Hall of Famer Clyde Drexler and rising star Terrence Ross spoke to Uinterview exclusively about the Sprite Slam Dunk contest.

Ross, the defending champion, was part of the winning side in 2014 as the Eastern Conference crushed the West in the slam-dunk contest. Ross utilized his rapper-friend Drake in his dunking routine. The duo walked out together before Ross’s first dunk as Drake held the 2013 Slam Dunk trophy that Ross won. Drake held the ball up for Ross to grab for his first dunk attempt. Ross nailed the difficult through-the-legs slam on his third and final try.

In January, Ross scored a career-high 51 points against the Los Angeles Clippers, a mark that tied Vince Carter’s single-game Toronto Raptors scoring record. More than 25 years ago, Drexler set his single game career-high when he scored 50 points against Sacramento in double overtime win. “You see how humble he is? I never scored 51 points and I’m a Hall of Famer,” Drexler told Uinterview. “Here he is at the age of 23, already with that accomplishment. There’s many great things ahead for Terrence Ross.”

Leave a comment

Read more about:

Q: Do you have a strategy for this year’s contest? - Uinterview

TERRENCE ROSS: I have a strategy for this year. It’s a little different from last year. At the same time, it should make the fans in Toronto excited.

Q: Do either of you have a player that you’ve always wanted to dunk on? - Uinterview

TR: I never really thought about this one.

CYLDE DREXLER: My thought was anybody who’s in front of the hoop. We’re trying to score. That’s what the game’s all about. So whoever’s under the basket, they could be potentially dunk-bait.

TR: I would say anyone taller than seven-foot. I would love to try to dunk on.

Q: Clyde, what was it like to play against Michael Jordan? - Uinterview

CD: Michael was a phenomenal player. In our era, there were many great players. Each and every night you looked forward to competing against the best there was to offer, and you know I played in the ‘80s and ‘90s and there were some of the greatest players to ever play the game who played in that era. Guys like Dr. J, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Moses Malone, Hakeem Olajuwon, Karl Malone, David Robinson, Charles Barkley, you name it. Michael, Larry and Magic were phenomenal players, but in that era there were a lot of great players, guys.

Q: What’s the secret to a great slam dunk? - Uinterview

CD: Well, we could tell you but then we’d have to… put you away. To be a great slam dunker, as anyone knows, you’ve got to be able to jump first of all, you’ve got to have some creativity, you’ve got to have the hands to make it happen because there’s nothing worse than a guy who can really jump but he can’t hold on to the ball and so the Sprite Slam Dunk this year you’ve got some incredible competitors, along with Terrence who’s the defending champion, you’ve got three All-Stars so Terrence has really been working on his creativity, trying to up his level, his game and we’ll get to see all of that on Saturday night.

Q: Clyde, what’s the online auction for the ‘Sprite Slam Dunk’? - Uinterview

Well, you see this ball that Mr. Ross has. Sprite has partnered with the legendary artist, Futura, and these balls will be up for bid at auctions.nba.com and the proceeds go to the Boys & Girls Club of America, something that’s very near and dear to our hearts as both of us grew up being a participant in their early after-school care programs with the Boys & Girls Club, so there’s the charity element, Sprite is always thinking about giving back. The slam dunk, the Sprite Slam Dunk is always probably, I don’t know about you Terrence, my favorite event of the weekend. Not just because I was a participant or because I was a part of Phi Slama Jama but because it’s the most exciting based on the creativity.

Q: Terrence, do you feel comfortable as a starter this year? - Uinterview

TR: Oh yes. I feel [comfortable] definitely coming in as a starter. I played enough games to really have that confidence and make sure I have the support of my teammates there, so it’s always feeling good going into the second half of the season with the momentum swing and just knowing you put yourself in the best possible position to win.

Q: Clyde, what was the most memorable moment playing on the Olympic ‘Dream Team’? - Uinterview

Well, obviously my teammates. Being a part of a team that included some of the greatest players ever, being coached by Chuck Daly, Lenny Wilkens and guys of that magnitude, but it was playing for your country, the pride you get, it’s not like your team, it’s bigger than that and it was a coming together of all these players. You know back in the day we didn’t really like our competition. We respected them, but we really didn’t like them. So there was some animosity because you competed so hard and so now you got to play against these guys who you’ve been really hating for so many years and so it was a different experience being on that team because it was a coming together and it was a beautiful experience, one that I will never forget.

Q: Terrence, what has been your career highlight? - Uinterview

TR: I would say scoring 51 points.

CD: Whoo. He can do that.

TR: Probably the biggest moment for me. It’s kind of surreal. I didn’t really believe it happened where I really scored 51 points. It must have been a misprint or something. It was just… it seemed just too good to be real.

CD: You see how humble he is? I never scored 51 points and I’m a Hall of Famer. Here he is at the age of 23, already with that accomplishment. There’s many great things ahead for Terrence Ross.

Q: Terrence, you were last year’s winner. What does it take to win the ‘Sprite Slam Dunk Contest’? - Uinterview

It takes a lot, it takes a lot. You really have to be creative, you have to make sure you can do your dunks and you really just have to come out there and give the people what they want.