Early in the Thunder’s Game 2 win on Thursday night, Kevin Durant unleashed a vicious dunk on Brendan Haywood that left the internet going crazy, and Haywood searching for his dignity.
POLL: Kevin Durant’s Dunk On Haywood Vs. Taj Gibson’s On Wade
But was it better than this?
Vote below, and EXPERT ANALYSIS is after the jump.
Let’s be honest. Choosing between these two dunks is pretty much impossible. It’s like choosing between Goodfellas and The Godfather. No matter which one you choose, you’re shortchanging the other one. So in that case, you have to consider other factors.
Which one made the bigger impact? What felt more dramatic at the time? Which one took on a life of its own? And on those fronts, you gotta give the edge to The Godfather, right? The tollbooth scene feels ordinary now, but imagine how cool that was in 1972? Godfather was meaningful in a way that Goodfellas couldn’t possibly match, because The Godfather had already broken that ground. So maybe that’s what sets it apart. (Counterpoint: Godfather has no scenes like this).
As far as Durant and Taj, they’re both equally vicious and awe-inspiring, so you have to think about other stuff, like who’s getting dunked on. Brendan Haywood may be a great shot blocker and a legit 7-footer, but he’s also exactly the sort of guy that you’d expect to get dunked on.
Dwyane Wade? Not so much.
Yeah, Durant’s dunk sent a message to Dallas and everyone else in the world that thinks KD’s just a jump shooter. But it was on Brendan Haywood. Taj Gibson’s was more of moment, because we’re just not used to seeing one of the Heat superstars getting dunked on. If Taj had done the exact same thing to Joel Anthony, then the edge goes to Durant here.
But he did that to Dwyane Wade and sent a serious message to Miami. The Heat superstars may have spent the whole year dunking all over the NBA, but the Bulls ain’t scared, and they can do it, too. So on this one, my vote goes to Taj, teaching Wade a lesson on karma.
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