【Watch Ava Online】

The Watch Ava OnlineNBA Slam Dunk contest is a rare beast that regularly makes the leap from sports spectacle to full-on topic of pop-culture watercooler exaltation.

Back-to-back winner Zach LaVine (remember his Space Jamdunk two years ago?) is out this year with injury, leaving his high-flying rival Aaron Gordon and serial posterizer DeAndre Jordan to headline Saturday's field.

But the name you reallyneed to know is one you might never have heard before.

SEE ALSO: How Aaron Gordon and Zach LaVine dunked their way into the 'NBA 2K17' video game

When this year's dunk contest field was announced, hardcore hoop-heads immediately zeroed in on neither Gordon nor Jordan, but Derrick Jones Jr.

Jones is a Phoenix Suns rookie who only turns 20 this Wednesday. His stats this season -- six total games played, and five total points scored as of this writing -- are unimpressive. But in basketball circles, online clips of the 6-foot-7 wing's aerial exploits have attracted gawkers and admirers since he was in high school.

A quick tour of Jones' internet dunking catalog is as edifying as it is jaw-dropping, so let's take take a spin.

Mashable Top Stories Stay connected with the hottest stories of the day and the latest entertainment news. Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

We'll start with an NBA Development League game last December. That's when Jones threw down one of 2016's most impressive dunks regardless of league or level -- a one-handed alley-oop catch-and-slam while knocking a defender to the ground. Look at this screen-grab. This is where he caught the pass!!

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

And here's the entire thing.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Here's a compilation of Jones' best D-League dunks this season.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Destroying defenders with slams and winning a dunk contest are two different propositions, however -- the former relies more on raw power and leaping ability, while the latter requires a combination of precision and creativity. So maybe Jones is just a good in-game dunker?

Nahhh. Here he is nonchalantly executing a 360-windmill during warmups before a recent Suns game.

.... get ready for a show. #AirplaneMode ✈️ pic.twitter.com/oTSEYCsLSf

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) February 14, 2017

Earlier, meanwhile, we mentioned that Jones' dunking ability has been a hot topic among basketball fans since he was in high school. Let's revisit that.

Below is a two-minute video from 2015 of Jones absolutely abusing rims. He dunks while looking downat the hoop. He goes through the legs off the backboard then dunks. He dunks after putting the ball around his back in mid-air. He dunks off one leg and he dunks off two legs. He dunks over defenders and pulls off crazy tricks just for kicks. Take a look.

And thus concludes our public service announcement, dear reader. Derrick Jones -- learn the name now, because after Saturday's dunk contest, it will be everywhere.

---

Featured Video For You

---

People think Adele broke her Grammy in two and gave half to Beyoncé

---

• Games
• Science
• Entertainment
• Tech
• Life
• Digital Culture
• Social Good
• Shopping

• Best Max streaming deal: Save 20% on annual subscriptions
• Twitter bans 'Imposter Buster' that identified fake accounts of trolls
• Tag Heuer has a Super Mario
• Mystery crocodile turns up at house on Christmas, many people claim it
• U.N. aims to make carbon emissions cost money at COP 25 climate talks
• How to make Alexa swear
• Trump's Christmas mass included a message about the power of words
• How to delete your Gmail account
• Is it 'Thunderbolts*' or *The New Avengers'?
• Unpacking that ‘Black Widow’ credits scene and what it means for Marvel's future

• Election Day mental health day: Give yourself a break
• Best AirPods deal: Save $10 on Apple AirPods 4
• Best TV backlight deal: Get 29% off Govee TV backlights
• Apps that use AI to streamline your home life
• NYT mini crossword answers for November 8
• Best early Black Friday earbud deal: Save $50 on Bose Ultra Open earbuds at Target
• Bitcoin hits all
• Best Black Friday doorbuster gaming deal: Save 41% on LG UltraGear monitor
• Max's password sharing crackdown is about to start
• Black Friday 2024 fitness tracker deals: Garmin, Fitbit, more

• Apple is reportedly still working on smart glasses of some kind
• Barack Obama and Prince Harry want activists to get off their hashtags and into the real world
• CNN used the phrase 'a dog's breakfast.' Here's what it means.
• 'Black Widow' combines box office and Disney+ for a wild $215 million opening
• Seven Steam games whose reviews have changed a lot
• Enormous mural of erect penis briefly pops up in New York
• A popular password manager screwed up, but there's an easy fix
• Blinking white guy from 'Blinking White Guy' meme speaks out on 'GMA'
• Better Buy: Previous
• 'The Office' co

• Operation Rock Wallaby rains food down on wildlife hurt by bushfires
• Male stars will also wear black to Golden Globes to highlight Hollywood sexual misconduct problems
• Trump's baseless Big Tech lawsuit is all about fundraising
• 17 huge moments that defined the royal family in 2017
• Best Amazon Fire TV Cube deal: Save $30 at Amazon
• Team internet reunites a man with an envelope full of money after he left it in the pub
• Remembering all the amazing Obama White House holiday decorations
• Jimmy Choo pulls Cara Delevingne ad after online backlash
• Creator job opportunities grew 7x in recent years [April 2025]
• Watch Beyoncé and Jay