Darnell Hillman (Champion) - First Round of 1977 NBA Slam Dunk Contest
Contrary to popular belief, Phoenix Suns forward Larry Nance is not the NBA's first ever slam dunk champion. That title belongs to former Indiana Pacers forward Darnell Hillman (aka Dr. Dunk). During the 1976-77 season, the NBA held a season-long dunk contest featuring one dunker from each NBA team duking it out in regional dunk battles for the right to nab the $15,000 top prize.After eliminating the likes of Moses Malone, Richard Washington, and Mickey Johnson in earlier rounds, Hillman defeated Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the semi-finals, setting up a showdown with Larry McNeill, who'd entered on behalf of the Golden State Warriors. For the championship round, held at halftime of Game 6 of the 1977 NBA Finals between the Philadelphia 76ers and Portland Trail Blazers, rules closely mirrored the ABA's dunk contest format from a year prior. Each competitor was tasked with dunking from five different spots on the floor - the left & right baseline, the left & right wing, and from the top of the key.
After McNeill misjudged his signature two-handed chin-up attempt, Hillman saw an opportunity to strike. Opting against two of his more stylistic dunks out of an abundance of caution (a 360 and one in which he stuffed the ball in his left armpit and punched it through the hoop with his right), Hillman cashed in on all five attempts, whirling the ball about and hammering home a pair of two-handed reverses to close things out and clinch the first ever NBA dunk title.
Interestingly, after beginning the year-long dunk contest as a member of the Indiana Pacers, Hillman's rights were traded to the Nets in early February. However, contract negotiations somehow kept him in Indiana until the end of the regular season, at which point he had no official team affiliation until he agreed to a deal with his new team. As such, in lieu of wearing a Pacers or Nets jersey, Hillman opted to represent The Bottle Shoppe, an Indianapolis liquor store who sponsored Hillman's city softball team.
"It cost me $250 to sponsor the softball team," said John McNelis, "and I never expected to get that much return for my money. I've had people coming in here all week wanting to know whether this was the same Bottle Shoppe that Hillman was advertising on television."
The NBA's dunk contest canon does not acknowledge Hillman as an official dunk champion.
"(The NBA) never recognized me," Hillman said. "I've contacted the league and everyone. Their reasoning? There was no major sponsor..."
The Pacers, however, eventually attempted to make amends for the oversight, surprising Hillman with an NBA Slam Dunk Contest trophy in 2017 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RU1Qs-5IvtI).
"I put (the trophy) up on my kitchen table," Hillman told the Indy Star. "It's been sitting there ever since I brought it home. It's the first thing I see when I come in the kitchen: 'There she is!"
Some final notes:
1. According to Robert Bradley, author of the Compendium of Professional Basketball, an incomplete list of competitors in the 1977 dunk contest include: Joe C. Meriweather, Mickey Johnson, David Thompson, George Gervin, Larry McNeill, M.L Carr, Richard Washington, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Alex English, Moses Malone, Darryl Dawkins, Ron Lee, and Elvin Hayes.
2. Julius Erving, the 1976 ABA Slam Dunk Champion, did not compete in the 1977 NBA event, rumored to politely balk at the modest purse ($15,000). Brent Musburger unsuccessfully campaigned for an ultimate showdown between Erving and Hillman, though he was able to convince his own network (CBS) to contribute an extra $10,000 to the cause.
3. Hillman took judo and often had a habit of starting basketball camps off by kicking the rim. And while he admits he could never take a quarter off the top of the backboard (as rumored), he asserts that he could snatch a one-hundred dollar bill dangling off the side.
4. A Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, M.L. Carr, and Ron Lee portion of the 1977 contest can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f58nZ6S-GQQ
5. Hillman is referenced in Kool Keith's Livin' Astro: "New Jersey Nets real man, you ain't no Darnell Hillman. Bald head like Slick Watts, I run rap like Mayor Koch."
Sources:
Courtside Magazine (and apbr.org message boards): http://www.apbr.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1077
Indy Star: https://www.indystar.com./story/sports/nba/pacers/2018/02/17/nba-dunk-contest-started-1976-when-pacers-darnell-hillman-won/341543002/
The Victoria Advocate (story on the Bottle Shoppe): https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=861&dat=19770612&id=4UdgAAAAIBAJ&sjid=D3ENAAAAIBAJ&pg=5416,2412756
Bottle Shoppe Yelp Review: https://www.yelp.com/biz/bottle-shoppe-liquor-indianapolis
Robert Bradley's Compendum of Professional Basketball: https://www.amazon.com/Compendium-Professional-Basketball-Second/dp/0964477491/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=basketball+compendium&qid=1594156329&sr=8-1
San Jose St. Video Tribute: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGJYT6AG1Cg Receive SMS online on sms24.me
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