The NBA All-Star weekend’s biggest conspiracy has still gone unsolved.
Miami Heat leaper Derrick Jones Jr. defeated his Orlando Magic counterpart Aaron Gordon in a shocking NBA dunk contest result, particularly after Gordon leaped over 7-foot-5 Tacko Fall to throw one down. Gordon was robbed a second time after his incredible 2016 performance ended with Zach LaVine winning.
So where’s the conspiracy?
Per ESPN, some of the judges told Ramona Shelburne they had planned for a tie that would lead to a second dunk-off. Candace Parker said that was the case. So did rapper Common.
“We thought it was going to be tied. We were like, ‘This is a tie!’ But somebody didn’t do it right. I don’t know who it is,” he told Shelburne.
In other words, the idea was to get Gordon’s score to 48 to match Jones’ tally from his previous dunk. But he got a 47, which means one of these three judges went rogue: Scottie Pippen, Chadwick Boseman and Jones’ former teammate, Dwyane Wade.
Everyone’s pointing fingers at Wade, who said afterwards that he “wasn’t the only one who gave him a 9.” He also posted this on Instagram:
No word from Boseman and Pippen, but these reactions are … interesting.
Hmmmm.
