Rudy to Play Underdog Role in Dunk Contest

Get ready, because the rhythm ... errr, the Rudy ... is gonna get ya! Portland rookie Rudy Fernandez has been selected, by you voters, to round this year’s Slam Dunk Contest field. The Oregonian has some further details:↵↵⇥Fernandez initially said he would like to bring teammate and countryman Sergio Rodriguez to the event to throw passes, but Rodriguez at the time said he would decline in favor of vacationing. However, teammate Brandon Roy - who should be a shoo-in for the All-Star reserves - said if he is selected to the team he would assist Fernandez in the competition.↵↵Can you say LIGHTS OUT? But seriously folks, I was unexcited about the contest before, and now it’s crossed the line into farce. I wanted Russell Westbrook as the fan selection, but that wasn’t going to happen. I’m not going to chalk it up to race, because it’s MLK Day, and because Westbrook’s OKC market makes Portland and Milwaukee, land of fellow nominee Joe Alexander, look like raging metropolises. Not to mention that the Blazers are, Miles situation or no Miles situation, competitive in the West, and the Bucks are picking up steam. So if there’s any bias here, it’s against players no one’s seen. Or maybe the Spainards stuffed the e-ballot box. Or maybe Blazers fans were the only people who cared about this stupid vote.↵
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Now, with some objectivity: Rudy has the ability to pull off a Brent Barry-like upset, a righteous blow for white dunking equality. However, he should leave the props and Sergios at home if he wants to do this. Steve Nash ruined Amare’s 2005 effort. Fernandez is best-known for a facial on Dwight Howard. When that’s your calling card, you’ve got to keep it raw and exciting, not cleve. That’s what Amare should’ve learned.↵
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↵That said, Rudy’s got a shot. The

Rudy -- Gay -- is too tall and gifted to muddy Fernandez’s claim to the name, and he’s strangely low-volume for such a physically-gifted player. Especially in this kind of setting. And people are sick of Nate Robinson. So -- promo of all promo opportunities -- this contest will likely come down to Fernandez and Dwight Howard, the dunking megalodon whose lapse gave birth the legend of Rudy. He’s the definite underdog, not in the least because he was voted in. Or because he’s named “Rudy” and is white. The problem for Howard is that the expectations are, pun intended, so sky-high. He’s been denied the 12-foot-rim experience, was robbed in 2007, and had his 2008 performance go down in history without much critical attention. Howard had better have something huge planned, or Fernandez’s unexpected viciousness and lithe invention just might sneak in and make a statement of their own.↵