Zach LaVine might very well be the best dunker in the NBA, but he’s sick of hearing about it.
On Tuesday afternoon, ESPN tweeted out a happy birthday message to the 25-year-old Bull, which included a video of his infamous 2016 dunk contest.
And while it always fun to relive that stellar performance, LaVine seemed like he could do without it.
https://twitter.com/ZachLaVine/status/1237454867217764353?s=20
I get you, man. For years everyone has just seen me as an elite, super blogger who can just beat anyone at blogging anytime, anywhere. It’s exhausting.
For real though, I do get where LaVine is coming from. Other than cracking his first All-Star roster, it seems like LaVine’s other main goal this season was to change the league’s perception of him. After all, he opted to participate in the three-point contest at All-Star Weekend to show the league a different skill set.
“I really don’t need to do a lot more with dunking,” LaVine said during an interview with ESPN. “I don’t really have a lot more to prove with it.”
Throughout the entire season, he’s dropped comments here and there about his dunking reputation, and this only continues the narrative. And to his credit, he’s taken some great steps forward in showing his game includes much more than just some insane leaping ability. He is shooting 38.0 percent from downtown, which includes a career-high 3.1 three-point makes per game. Overall, his invitation to the three-point contest was no joke, before his injury, LaVine had the 7th-most 3-pointers made in the NBA (that includes a whole bunch of attempts, but hey …).
In the meantime, he’s also slowly improved his defensive effort. It’s not fantastic, perhaps, but there’s certainly a noticeable difference. And he could very well end this season with a career-high in rebounds and assists per game.
The problem for LaVine is that the only reason the Bulls are making national headlines is for their dysfunction as an organization. The lack of nationally televised games and general interest has brushed his solid all-around play under the rug. So while I completely get LaVine’s urge to be viewed as more than a dunker, until this team can attract more eyes for their actual play, he’ll continue to hold that label.
Hey, there could be worse things to be known for.
Anyway, happy birthday, Zach!!