White Men Can Jump. Sort Of.

A couple of guys goaded me into trying to dunk at the lunchtime basketball game today. "You've lost a lot of weight," they said, knowing I'm a sucker for flattery, "You've got to be close." So I tried, and much to my surprise, succeeded.

It wasn't what you'd call Jordanesque-- I barely got the ball over the rim-- but that's the first time I've managed to dunk a basketball since... sometime in my first year or two of grad school. I believe the phrase is "w00t."

I'm sorely tempted to call that my accomplishment for the day, and go home now.

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YO, YO, YO Dog! Time to call Nike for that shoe contract!

Damn, boy! You go!

I installed a hoop at 9 feet in our driveway, just so I'd be able to dunk it (I could touch the rim, but never dunk, back in college).

Sadly, all I can do even with the 9-footer is touch the rim. Egad! I've lost exactly 12 inches of vertical in the past 17 years.

do you prefer Air Chad, or Air Orzel???

By Perry Rice (not verified) on 31 Aug 2006 #permalink

We demand photographic or video evidence, or pretty soon you'll be saying you felt the hand of God pushing you up to the rim... or something!

*returns to napping*

congrats man. Like Dave M I'm a 9' foot man, knowing that 9'1" would shame me. In high school (secondary school for me) we used to use the wall behind the backboard to get a spring up to dunk - as in run at a wall and bounce back and up. It's the only way I ever got it ... pretty pants at 6' 2"