After facing a lot of criticism for the role he played in robbing Aaron Gordon of a win in the NBA Dunk Contest on Saturday night, Dwyane Wade has now taken to social media to defend himself.
Gordon received a total score of 47 on his final dunk despite leaping over 7-foot-5 big man Tacko Fall . Derrick Jones Jr. got a 48 for his dunk after the two players each scored perfect 50s on their first three dunks of the final round, so Jones took home the hardware. Wade was one of three judges who gave Gordon a 9, and he reminded everyone of that with a funny Instagram post on Sunday.
Rapper Common, who was also a judge for the contest, said Gordon and Jones were supposed to tie on their last dunk, but one of the judges screwed up giving his or her score. The way Common and fellow judge Scottie Pippen (who also gave Gordon a 9) looked at Wade after the scores were delivered made it seem like Wade was the one who messed up. Jones also plays for the Miami Heat, so some conspiracy theorists wondered if Wade intentionally helped give Jones the win over Gordon.
Obviously, the Dunk Contest is a fun event, and no one’s livelihood was at stake. Still, Gordon not winning after dunking over a 7-foot-5 dude has led to some great reactions. Wade is clearly feeling the heat, and we don’t mean the Miami kind.
More must-reads: