Fantasy dunk contest: Recent Duke basketball risers vs. NPOY Obi Toppin
Cassius Stanley
The pure, raw athleticism that Cassius Stanley possesses is the main reason that his decision regarding his future is so difficult.
Stanley’s potential is as high as anyone in the draft, but his basketball skills still need to develop.
One skill that is NBA-ready is his dunking, as can be seen in the video below. As long as a Duke player threw it anywhere remotely close to the rim, the 6-foot-6 guard was going to get it and throw it down.
Just one year after Zion Williamson set the vertical jump record at the Duke Combine, Stanley broke that record, and while the debate is to be had whose dunks were better, I believe Stanley was getting up higher than Williamson.
ALSO READ: Vertical jump record doesn’t last as Cassius Stanley tops Zion Williamson
The one negative on Stanley’s dunks were that many of them came via the alley-oop; while very exciting, it doesn’t leave fans with the anticipation of what could be in the freshman’s bag of tricks if he had a one-on-one with the rim.
Who knows, maybe another year of dunking at the college level could improve Cassius Stanley’s score and we could revisit this question next offseason (wink, wink)