Rudy Gay to compete in 2009 Sprite Slam Dunk Competition
MEMPHIS, December 29, 2009 – Memphis Grizzlies forward Rudy Gay will compete in the 2009 Sprite Slam Dunk Competition to be held on NBA All-Star Saturday Night, Feb. 14 at US Airways Center (7 p.m. CT) in Phoenix, the NBA recently announced.
Gay will make his second consecutive appearance in the contest and his third-straight at All-Star Weekend. The third-year forward finished fourth in last year’s dunk contest and scored 20 points as a member of the winning sophomore team in the 2008 T-Mobile Rookie Challenge in New Orleans. He led the rookie team with 22 points in the 2007 T-Mobile Rookie Challenge in Las Vegas.
“Last year was fun, but it didn’t turn out like I wanted it to. This year, I’m determined to do well,” Gay said. “The slam dunk competition is one of the biggest stages to show off your athletic ability, so why not do it again?”
The 22-year-old currently leads the Grizzlies in scoring, averaging 19.6 points per game, and is attempting to become just the third player in franchise history (Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Pau Gasol) to post back-to-back seasons of 20 points or more. Gay also ranks 13th in the NBA in dunks with 39.
The 6-8, 230-pound forward is one of just three players in club history to participate in the dunk contest, along with Hakim Warrick (2006) and Stromile Swift (2001). No Grizzlies player has ever won the event, which debuted in 1984.
Joining Gay in the slam dunk field will be defending champion Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic and the New York Knicks’ Nate Robinson, winner of the 2006 contest in Houston. For the first time, fans will select the fourth participant, exclusively through an online vote on NBA.com, from a list of three rookies – the Milwaukee Bucks’ Joe Alexander, the Portland Trail Blazers’ Rudy Fernandez or the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Russell Westbrook.
Through Jan. 14, fans can vote at NBA.com/dunk for one of the three first-year players. The three rookies will be posting original webisodes promoting why they should be selected as the fourth Sprite Slam Dunk participant. Every time a fan votes online for one of the three first-year players, they will be automatically entered into a sweepstakes that will give a lucky fan a trip for two to NBA All-Star 2009 in Phoenix.
The opportunity for fans to determine one of this year’s dunkers is part of Sprite’s “They Dunk. You Decide.” campaign, which debuted as part of the 2008 Sprite Slam Dunk. For the second-straight year, fans will have the final say in deciding the winner of the competition. In the Final round of dunks, fans will be able to cast their votes via SMS TXT message and at NBA.com to determine this year’s winner. The dunker with the most fan votes will be named the winner of the Sprite Slam Dunk.
The two dunkers with the highest first round scores will advance to the final round. The dunker with the lowest total score from the first round will compete first in the final round. Dunks then will alternate until each player has completed two. Time limit rules still apply. In the final round, fan voting will open via SMS TXT message and at NBA.com. The combined results from SMS TXT voting and NBA.com will determine the champion.
The Sprite Slam Dunk is part of NBA All-Star 2009, which also includes the T-Mobile Rookie Challenge & Youth Jam; Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout; Playstation © Skills Challenge; Haier Shooting Stars; NBA All-Star Jam Session presented by adidas; and the 58th NBA All-Star Game.
Sprite is world’s leading lemon-lime soft drink and has been the official soft drink of the NBA since 1994.
