Vince Carter
Photo: NBAE/Getty Images

It goes without saying that basketball is one of the best sports, with the NBA being the most competitive and the most entertaining completion in the world. We witness some of the greatest players create magic on the pitch as they lead their respective teams towards victory. 

We have witnessed great legends such as LeBron, Michael Jordan, and the late Kobe Bryant, who serve as the biggest role models for younger generations. But the influence of this sport goes well beyond that. One of the most surprising industries that are influenced by basketball and NBA specifically is the online casino industry. 

How? Research has shown that basketball fans are also fans of playing online casino games, which is why game providers started creating various casino games with this sport and its players/teams as the main theme. The UK is the most sought out market of this industry as the people there are well-known for their love for the sport and wagering money online every once in a while. These basketball games are very entertaining to play and if you want to give them a try, we have a UK guide for new online casinos 2021 which contain many quality games of this character. 

Since we stated that the NBA is the most entertaining league in the world, we decided to reminisce on some of the most memorable dunkers that played in this competition. Here is our personal list of the top three players. 

Shaquille O’Neal 

Shaq may serve as a surprise entry, but let us explain why we decided to list him. He was known for his size and strength, but the biggest thing that made basketball fans fall in love for him was the ruthless dunks that he had over the years. He even managed to break the board on several occasions, something that became a big highlight of his career. 

Vince Carter

Next up, we have a player that was known for the best dunks in his prime, but the interesting thing about Vince Carter is that the two of his most memorable dunks were actually not in the NBA. He debuted the classic elbow-in-the-rim dunk in the 200 dunk contest and pulled the Dunk of Death that same year when he jumped over Frederic Weis. For the record, Frederic is over 7 feet. 

Julius Erving

And finally, the number one spot goes to none other than Julius Erving. There have been many great dunkers that came before him, but the reason as to why we decided to rank him at the top of our list is because he literally managed to turn dunking into an art form. One of his biggest innovations was the free-throw-line takeoff, which he pulled in the 1976 All-Star game. 

Since then, this has become a commonly used dunk in games and dunk contests. It is safe to say that he had the biggest influence on dunking and devoted more time and attention to this art than any other basketball player.