The NBA’s annual dunk-a-thon is a mere hours away and we figured we’d take a minute to breakdown those involved. Competing this year will be Blake Griffin of the Clippers, Serge Ibaka of the Thunder, JaVale McGee of the Wizards and DeMar DeRozan of the Raptors.

Blake Griffin is the hands down favorite to win it all. The author of a host of highlight dunks is ready to stake his claim as one of the all time greats.

One could argue that the NBA stacked the deck in Griffin’s favor but, we are above those sorts of acquisitions…well, kind of, but not really.

If you are like most fans in the NBA, you are wondering who the other three contestants are, here is a highlight reel breakdown of all involved:

Blake Griffin:

Serge Ibaka:

DeMar DeRozan:

JaVale McGee

Ron Artest is well, he’s Ron Artest. Anyone who has followed the NBA for the past 5-10 years knows that the guy is a punk, yes I said it he’s a punk. Before the trade to the Lakers I already had deep hatred for the guy because of his negative impact on the NBA. He is a horrible role model, and a liability to the league as a whole. The guy is a hell of a basketball player but is better known for his horrible behavior on and off the court. 

I have to admit, my hate for him grew even more after hearing about his trade to the Lakers. I thought it was foolish for the Lakers to give up, Trevor Ariza, who I thought was a good guy, for a punk like Artest.

Well today Ariza proved to be just as much of a punk as Artest when he took a swipe at Toronto Raptors rookie guard DeMar Derozen, who I happen to be a big fan of. The incident occured towards the end of the third quarter. Ariza let his frustrations get the best of him after shooting 0-9 from the field at that point in the game. Ariza tried to throw an elbow at Derozen after a steal, and rightly so, got tossed from the game and more than likely will receive further punishment from the league.

Hopefully Ariza learns his lesson from this mistake and does not turn into another Artest. He is still young and has enough time left in the league to prove he isn’t a punk, unlike Artest who will always have the reputation of being a punk.

Photo via www.thesportsunion.com