The 2026 NBA All-Star Weekend is rapidly approaching, and fans are getting excited to see their favorite players battle it out in the annual event. What makes the All-Star weekend special to basketball fans is how NBA players showcase their other skills, which they normally wouldn’t do in a regular game.
One of the highly anticipated events of the weekend is the Slam Dunk Contest. Over the years, the Slam Dunk Contest has been viewed as one of the most exciting events next to the All-Star game. This is because of the gravity-defying dunks that fans get to witness, which typically aren’t seen in a regular game.
Having that in mind, some might be wondering when and what time the Slam Dunk Contest will commence. Here’s everything you need to know.
Details on the 2026 NBA Slam Dunk Contest
The 2026 NBA Slam Dunk Contest is set to take place on Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14, approximately from 7 PM ET. Fans can watch it on TV on either NBC or stream it on Peacock.
This year’s All-Star weekend will be held at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. Given that the event will be located in Los Angeles, expect to see a lot of celebrities and prominent personalities in the audience this weekend.
As usual, there will be four participants in this year’s Slam Dunk Contest. Here’s the full list of competitors:
- Jaxson Hayes (Los Angeles Lakers)
- Jase Richardson (Orlando Magic)
- Carter Bryant (San Antonio Spurs)
- Keshad Johnson (Miami Heat)
If some are wondering why three-time defending champion Mac McClung isn’t in the lineup, it’s because he has declined to participate this year.
Among all the participants, the one to look out for is Jase Richardson, son of the two-time Slam Dunk champion, Jason Richardson. It’ll be interesting to see if the younger Richardson has inherited his father’s creativity to dunk the ball.
For those who are unfamiliar, the rules of the contest are as follows:
- All four participants will compete in the first round and try to rack up the highest score possible. Each player will have two dunk attempts. Their scores between both dunks will then be combined. The two players with the highest combined score will compete in the final round.
- In the final round, the finalists will follow the same rules as the first round. Each player will have two dunk attempts. The participant with the highest combined score will be crowned the champion.
This year’s lineup of judges is special, as it will feature four former Slam Dunk Contest champions: Dominique Wilkins, Dwight Howard, Nate Robinson, and Brent Barry.
It’s worth mentioning that fan voting will also matter, as NBA ID members have been given access to submit their scores on dunk attempts. A celebrity will act as the fans’ representative and present the average as the fifth official score on top of the four judges’ scores.
