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Vinsanity

That Vince Carter did this weekend for basketball can be compared to what vanilla did for ice cream.

In the NBA's last All-Star Weekend, which was two years ago, NBA officials decided to remove the Slam Dunk Contest because they felt the well of original dunks had run dry.

The officials thought it would be fresh to add a Two Ball event that features stars from the NBA and WNBA teaming up.

Let's be honest here. The only reason this event exists is so the NBA can be politically correct. The WNBA is trying to get undeserved recognition on an international stage.

Not to take away anything from the talent of the WNBA players, but they really don't deserve to be on the court with the greatest players in the world.

Every true basketball fan in the world was upset that the unexciting Two Ball event took the place of the most exciting event of the All-Star Weekend. Because of the lockout last season, there couldn't be an All-Star Weekend.

The league officials recognized that with the addition of Carter and other young superstars, the Slam Dunk Contest could be brought back in proper form.

What went down this weekend was the greatest Slam Dunk Contest to date.

Carter made not only basketball fans, but everyone, get out of their seats. Carter's first dunk - an unheard of 360 degree windmill jam- was the greatest dunk in the contest's history.

To give an example of how impressive that really is, Dominique Wilkins did a windmill jam in the 80's to win the Slam Dunk Contest. Carter added a 360 degree spin to that unbelievable dunk.

The only criticism anyone could offer about Carter's dunks was that it was unfair to the other superstars in the competition.

Steve Francis of the Houston Rockets can't even palm a basketball, but he did dunks that were even better than, yes, Air Jordan. Ricky Davis of the Charlotte Hornets did a dunk that would have won the contest easily in previous years. He did a between-the-legs reverse jam, but because of Carter's performance, the crowd didn't even respond to Davis' dunk.

Perhaps one can feel the worst for Jerry Stackhouse of the Detroit Pistons, who had to follow Carter. The TV cameras missed some of his slams because they were replaying Carter's sensational dunks.

Carter received scores of 50, 49 and 50 on his first three dunks. The only reason he got a 49 on his second dunk was because Kenny Smith, who was a commentating judge who used to play in the NBA, didn't think it was as good as Carter's first dunk.

The word that best described the show is also on Carter's Web page - Vinsanity.

Kamy Shaygan is a freshman majoring in journalism and can be reached at sports@wildcat.arizona.edu.