Terrence Ross Wins The 2013 Sprite NBA Slam Dunk Contest: Grades/Review

#LetRossDunk?

How about #RossJustWon?

58% of fans can't be wrong.

Terrence Ross is your 2013 Slam Dunk contest winner, and all is right in the world once again.

The Slam Dunk contest trophy is back where it belongs. We may not be championship contenders, but we sure know how to produce highlight-reel slam dunk artists here in Toronto.

Now that my pleasantries are out of the way....

Did that competition suck or what?!?!

I'm sorry, but with all of the hype surrounding this event, it sure was a stinker.

I wasn't at all entertained, but that's just me. Dunks were being botched left and right, the creativity in the slams was severely lacking (for the most part) and any meaningful reaction from the fans in attendance was non-existent.

Thank goodness for Ross.

The best dunker came out on top, and I'm happy for that.

Let's take a look at the two slams that won our rook the competition.

GRADE FOR DUNK: A -

The Vince Carter jersey was a nice touch.

He's not out of the league. He's not retired. He's not at all beloved by the city of Toronto, but there is no denying his title as arguably the greatest dunker the NBA has ever seen.

This slam could have gotten over so much better if Kenny Smith hadn't butchered his reaction on commentary.

Shaquille O'Neal was begging for some sort of enthusiastic response from "The Jet", but to no avail.

It was a good dunk? Compared to some of the other slams we saw that night, this jam by Ross was equivalent to a Da Vinci painting wrapped in happy-fun candy.

DUNK GRADE: A

No lawsuit for Ross on this night, as he barely missed karate kicking that ball-boy in the back of the head.

At least, it appeared that way.

Jumping over the shortest kid in your fourth grade class isn't exactly a miraculous feat, but it sure looked cool.

FINAL THOUGHTS

James White of the New York Knicks flopped harder than Manu Ginobili on game day. He could have nailed a three-pointer on his second dunk attempt and wound up with a better score.

Kenneth Faried of the Denver Nuggets showed some life by putting the ball between his legs after throwing the ball off of the backboard, but former Golden State Warrior and current Philadelphia 76er Jason Richardson did it a lot better. It wasn't a bad dunk by any means though. If his first dunk was more authoritative and powerful, he might have given Ross a run for his money in the finals.

Gerald Green set the bar high with his first dunk, but cutting off the mesh and taking an entire round to complete a dunk that wouldn't have gotten him a half-decent score in the first place just sucked the life out of me and everyone in the building.

The guy who put a fresh mesh back on the rim was more entertaining than Green on that attempt.

Eric Bledsoe of the Los Angeles Clippers could have laid the ball in and gotten a louder reaction than his first dunk. His reverse windmill for his second dunk was exciting, but as was the story for a majority of the dunks on this night, it wasn't anything to write home about. A 50 from the judges was awfully generous.

Jeremy Evans revealing the painting of himself and signing it was more exciting than his actual dunk. Not knowing what was under the cloth took away from the moment, as all anyone really cared about was what was underneath.

Mark Eaton looked like he wanted to be anywhere else.

All in all, an above-average performance from our very own Terrence Ross couldn't salvage what was uneventful, uninspired Dunk Contest.

Sure, it had its moments, but nothing really stood out. I wasn't "Wowed".

Even Ross' best dunks wouldn't crack the top-30 in Dunk Contest history, some examples of which can be seen here in all their glory.

It's true.

Not to be a downer or anything.

Regardless of that, kudos to you, Terrence Ross.

May your reign as champion be long and prosperous.

At least until LeBron James decides to do one of these.