NBA D-League Showcase 2011: Slam Dunk, 3-Point Contestants Announced

The NBA D-League Showcase is well-known as the place to scout all 16 teams in action at the same location, but this year it's also the place to be entertained as the league has added a slam dunk and three-point contest to it's already packed schedule with 16 games in four days.

The event will take place at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday night at the South Padre Island Convention Centre following the Rio Grande Valley Vipers game versus the Erie BayHawks that will be shown live on Versus at 7 p.m.

Marqus Blakely (Bakersfield Jam), Chris Johnson (Dakota Wizards), Dar Tucker (New Mexico Thunderbirds) and L.D. Williams (Springfield Armor) will be the participants in the Slam Dunk Contest. As has happened before, it may rival the NBA's version. Blakely (highlights below) won the NCAA's dunk contest last year over a field that also included Williams, Dar Tucker, who will be trying to defend his crown after dunking over 7-foot Brian Butch last season, and Chris Johnson's high-flying alley-oops are a staple in any Dakota game. With a solid field, it will be interesting to see if Tucker's able to retain his crown.

In the 3-point contest, Corey Allmond (Fort Wayne Mad Ants), Andre Ingram (Utah Flash), Marcus Landry (Reno Bighorns), Chris Lofton (Iowa Energy), Scottie Reynolds (Springfield Jam), Jamar Smith (Maine Red Claws), Robert Vaden (Tulsa 66ers) and Booker Woodfox (Texas Legends) will all be competing to show which is the best long-range gunner in the D-League.
Ingram is currently the best 3-point shooter in the league as he's made 36 of his 77 three-pointers attempted this season for the Flash and this year's prohibitive favorite as he also won the contest at the 2010 NBA All-Star weekend. Chris Lofton, perhaps the best pure shooter in the D-League and Booker Woodfox, a specialist for the Texas Legends, also have solid chances of earning top honors in the contest.

The 3-Point Contest will be a three-round competition, featuring several movable "Money Rack's" consisting of all "Money balls" and increased points awarded for shots made from deeper shooting spots. From the field of eight contestants participating in Round 1, the four players with the highest scores will move on to Round 2. The two players with the highest scores in Round 2 will then compete in Round 3. The player with the highest scorer in Round 3 will be the champion.