Greatest dunkers in GHSA history: Help us compile the list
Those of us who cover high school sports for The Atlanta-Journal Constitution have seen our fair share of throw-down, rim-shaking, nasty dunks during a combined 100 or so years of coverage in this state.
We were in Thomaston in the 1980s when Kenny Walker of Crawford County flew over a couple of R.E. Lee players in the middle of the lane and brought the house down. We were at the B/C camp a few years later when Griffin’s Darrin Hancock put on a dunking exhibition, the last slam after flying over a large lunch room table he had placed near the free-throw line.
But we need your help to compile a list of the greatest dunkers in GHSA history. Here’s what we want you to do: Tell us below about the best dunk you’ve ever seen in a high school basketball game. Give us the player, the year (or estimation), the place and a solid description of the dunk. And if you want to possibly be part of our story, copy the post and send with contact information to sports@ajc.com.
The “Greatest Dunkers in GHSA History” list and story will be posted on ajc.com and published in the newspaper’s sports section on Jan. 13, which happens to be the same day we will begin taking nominations for the ajc.com’s annual Slam-Dunk video contest. That competition is for current players.And just to whet the dunking appetite, here are a few factoids you just might recall:
- Name three former Georgia high school players have won the NBA Slam Dunk Contest:
They are Walker (Crawford County) in 1989, Josh Smith (McEachern) in 2005 and Dwight Howard (SW Atlanta Christian) in 2008.
- Name three Georgia high school players who won the dunk contest at the prestigious McDonald’s All-American all-star game.
They are Hancock (Griffin) in 1990, Carlos Strong (Cedar Shoals) in 1992 and Donnell Harvey (Randolph-Clay) in 1999.
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© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
241 comments Add your comment
Texas Pete
December 7th, 2012
10:20 am
Back in the mid-1970’s, the College Park basketball teams of Coach Ken Ross had a point guard named Kenny Smith who could leap out of the gym. It was illegal to dunk back then. But in warm ups, Kenny could sky with the best of them. Great memories of watching him play!
Bany Boy
December 7th, 2012
10:22 am
Chris “Camo Head” Cameron, Dougherty High, 1993. Caught 3 alley oops on 3 consecutive possessions in the Albany Civic Center!! Went to Tulane and coaches at Albany State now.
Jim
December 7th, 2012
10:26 am
Myron Pace of Cedartown in late 80’s, early 90’s; amazing, could be the in NBA. But he’s serving a life sentence instead…a shame
GRIP
December 7th, 2012
10:48 am
Brent Petway 2003 Griffin Bears numerous rim rattiling dunks enroute to the 2003 state championship, but the dunk that stood above all was in the championship game against South Atlanta and AJC player of the year Vincent Banks, before heading to the University of Michigan.
zeke
December 7th, 2012
10:50 am
Who cares? That is not a skill!!!
Bulldog Mom-D. L.
December 7th, 2012
10:53 am
John Law of B. T. Washington High, went on to win the prestigious Dominque Wilkins Slam Dunk Contest.
johnny fontane
December 7th, 2012
10:58 am
Jumping Joe Ward from Griffin hands down.
NCDawgFan
December 7th, 2012
11:18 am
Dontonio Wingfield has to get some of this dunk love. He already looked like Dominique Wilkins when he was in 9th grade.
Norcross '97
December 7th, 2012
11:29 am
Carlos Strong of Clarke Central. He once dunked so hard in the Norcross gym that I think the rim is still shaking!
Buckshot
December 7th, 2012
11:33 am
Tim Starr of the old Fairmount High School during the early 90’s could dunk with the best of them. Georgetown wanted him bad……grades were another story.
Chicken Bone
December 7th, 2012
11:42 am
Bo Bo Hubbard of Stone Mountain High in the mid to late 70’s was awesome before the dunk was legal in high school. Believe he played collegiately at Maryland before the Globetrotters. Also, in 1968 6′ 8″ 280lb Mitch Sutton dunked a ball at the Macon coliseum during warm-ups that almost broke the backboard and the goal shook for minutes as the officials came out of their lock rooms. Can’t remember if the Pirates got a technical fouls or not. I believe they might have though! He played for the Philadelphia Eagles
mt
December 7th, 2012
11:45 am
Norris Randall, Pelham High School,1971-1973 ,spectacular
oconeedawg
December 7th, 2012
12:07 pm
Lou Williams and Mike Mercer at South Gwinnett most recently but Melvin “Hollywood” Henderson from Decatur back in THE day.
Carz
December 7th, 2012
12:13 pm
I played against Hollywood in High School. Freakish talent. Great passer too. Had a guy named Graham on that team that could dunk good too.
Carz
December 7th, 2012
12:15 pm
Brook Steppe of North Springs would slam it and take the technical if they had a good lead, which was most of the time. Sometime in the late 70’s. Great player.
SEC FAN
December 7th, 2012
12:22 pm
Troy Mitchell- Stone Mountain High School class of 88′. Didn’t play for the school but was nasty on the playground.
NWGAfan
December 7th, 2012
1:17 pm
Timmy Starr of Fairmount High (1987-1990). One of the best ever! Legendary.
Aubrey
December 7th, 2012
1:31 pm
Herb White, Decatur; Travis Leslie, Columbia; Myron Pace, Cedartown
Aubrey
December 7th, 2012
1:39 pm
Also the aforementioned, Carlos Strong, but from Cedar Shoals not Clarke Central. His conteporary at Clarke Central was Percy Eberhart, (deceased), a ferocious dunker who ended one game early by bringing down the rim, not, backboard, and supporting wookwork.
Anthony Scott
December 7th, 2012
1:49 pm
Martago Howell of Upson-Lee High School 2009-2011. Dunked on many people his entire career. Only 5′10”…. Dunked on a 7 footer from Jones County. Kissed the rim on a kid at Phillips Arena. Had 5 spectacular dunks in one game against Lamar County. His brother had a fast break as he trailed. His brother threw It off the backboard and a LC player tried to get it. Martago leaped over him and dunked all on him. The guy was hurt on the dunk.
MM
December 7th, 2012
2:29 pm
I saw both Tony Woods and Victor Saxon dunk several times in games, they were both good, but couldn’t dunk like Ron Curtis at Gordon Central in the late ’80s. Curtis was a beast and could throw it down. Timmy Starr at Fairmount may have been better than RC. Anytime the two played the gym was full waiting on the highlight of the night and when they played each other, dunkfest! I once saw Starr jump over a defender(Trion HS) standing outside the block trying to get a charge on a fast break.
Chad
December 7th, 2012
3:25 pm
James Forrest caught one on a break away, met the defender mid air chest to chest, james continued after the contact for a thunderous 2 handed jam, and the defender ended up on his back underneath the basket, what made it worse is the bleachers behind the basket fans jumped up and out the stands and were taunting the player laying on his back,……….the most vicious dunk ive ever witness at the high school level…..I live nowehere near GA saw on SSA on espn maybe 20 years ago and still resonates in my mind to this day,…….if you can find the clip post it he should win,…..
Jefe
December 7th, 2012
3:33 pm
I saw Daquan Jones at Wheeler about 5 years ago put down a dunk with such authority over some kid at Centennial HS (tournament) that you could feel it through the entire gym. best dunk I’ve ever seen in watching hundreds of games of hs basketball over the years.
Jefe
December 7th, 2012
3:34 pm
and best college dunk – 1988 Jerome Lane for Pitt shattering the glass backboard. priceless!!
Bob Leblah
December 7th, 2012
3:44 pm
Quardekious Varametrius Crandell-Popson
Bob Leblah
December 7th, 2012
3:49 pm
The above mentioned once dunked so hard, both pistols fell out of his socks!!
Enus Stokesberry
December 7th, 2012
4:22 pm
Wingfield albany
Applejack vienna
hillman wilkinson
Mccolough americus
jarvis
December 7th, 2012
4:30 pm
@Bob you are an ignorant racist fatty.
Marietta boy
December 7th, 2012
4:32 pm
Dion Glover and Dontonio Wingfield
Marietta boy
December 7th, 2012
4:33 pm
Patrick Ewing Jr., knocked a kid out from Harrison from a dunk. crazy.
Norcross Trucker
December 7th, 2012
4:46 pm
You said “history”, not recent memory, right? Herbie White, Decatur High School, class of 1966. He could get up over the rim, read a chapter of War and Peace, throw down a slam, have a sandwich, then return to the floor. If you ever saw him, you would know – he’s the best ever, and not just because he was a short power forward instead of a seven-footer.
DYNAMICBIGBOY
December 7th, 2012
5:00 pm
No less tha Wilt Chamberlain himself named Herb White from Univ of Ga, and Decatur High School as the greatest dunker in NBA history. If he is the greatest in NBA history I would assume that he would win in your contest.
old school
December 7th, 2012
5:39 pm
Also too remember Jumping Joe Ward of Griffin and Michael Chico Partridge of Newnan.
Had some good duels in the early 80’s. Both were powerful Nique like dunkers.
The Real Deal
December 7th, 2012
5:50 pm
Brian Smithson. North Cobb High School 2001-2003. Baddest 5 foot 10 white dude I ever saw play high school basketball.
Monroe's First Redcoat
December 7th, 2012
6:12 pm
Al Wood (Jones County) has to be in there, as does Jumpin’ Joe Ward from Griffin (UGA). Fir that matter, just about anybody who played for Southwest Macon in the late 70s-early 80s. Those boys only occasionally came down to earth…..
Old School APS
December 7th, 2012
6:13 pm
James Banks-Smith HS, James Crawford-BTW HS, Chris Morris-Douglas HS, Terry Martin-Douglas HS, Rickey Brown-West Fulton HS, Ricky Gresham-Brown HS, Joe Ward-Griffin HS, Kenny Walker, Tony Flanigan-SW ATL HS, Terry Fair-SW Macon HS
Monroe's First Redcoat
December 7th, 2012
6:14 pm
Travis Leslie (Columbia HS, UGA) as well. That kid was a MUTANT!!!
heat check
December 7th, 2012
6:28 pm
Antwuan Dixon from Wheeler HS in the late 90s. Dude was a beanpole, but he could jump higher than anyone I’ve seen at that level.
Dennis G. Berdanis
December 7th, 2012
7:11 pm
Dale Ellis threw down some pretty good ones playing center for Marietta in the late 70s.
Bryan
December 7th, 2012
8:05 pm
Let’s go wayback to the late 70’s when the dunk became legal again. I’ll give you 3 sky monsters: Terry Fair and Orlando Lee of SW Macon and James Daniels of Cedar Shoals
DawgNole
December 7th, 2012
8:30 pm
Dum-Bass
December 6th, 2012
11:46 pm
Please stop it with this asinine emphasis on dunking, especially in high school. That’s exactly the reason I no longer watch the NBA. College BB is headed down the same road and is losing me also.
______________________
Somehow I don’t believe they’ll miss you at all.
Panther
December 7th, 2012
9:29 pm
Dale Ellis at the Garden screaming down the baseline over Willie Tennison of Campbell in 1978
T bigg
December 7th, 2012
9:59 pm
Tyrell Biggins, central Gwinnett, black night, class of 92′, dunked on white-bread Steve Wilson from brookwood high. Quoted in school newspaper, “I dunked it on his head….”….
Ed
December 7th, 2012
10:11 pm
I’d rather wrestle and fart, then dunk. Class of ‘78 berkmar.
The Dude
December 7th, 2012
10:49 pm
I cannot remember his name, but he played at Columbia in Dekalb co, and dunked on 4 guys on our team in 94 or 95. What a talent. He ended up signing to play at Alabama, but unfortunately he was an idiot and went to the hoosegow because he was involved in a carjacking ring
Fats G
December 7th, 2012
11:26 pm
Basketball Jones of Northeast HS in 1983. Dude be bringing da house down every Friday in Macon town. Best I ever seen and he was only 6-2
Just too old
December 8th, 2012
2:20 am
Cedric Henderson…part of the Marietta’s 1983 State Championship team…I would swear that all his points were off of dunks. A man among boys.
Hugh
December 8th, 2012
4:43 am
Purvis Ellison SHS
Red Ruffinsore
December 8th, 2012
7:18 am
HERB WHITE Decatur High School @ 1967 no doubt about it.
Mobes
December 8th, 2012
8:00 am
Herb White, 6 feet 2 inches, Decatur High School, 1966. Played at Georgia and a couple of years with the Hawks. He was one whiteman who could jump.
Joby Wright, 6 feet 8 inches, Johnson High School, Savannah, 1968. Selected by AJC in 1975 as Georgia’s best high basketball player of the quarter century.