Mitchell soars to dunk title, Booker sets 3-point record

LOS ANGELES – The Associated Press

The NBA dunk contest was a throwback in many ways, with a 21-year-old rookie and a 25-year-old, third-year pro fighting it out for the trophy.

Larry Nance Jr. rolled out his father’s old uniform - down to the knee-high socks - and then rolled out his father himself to help with one of his dunks.

But he came up short against Donovan Mitchell, the precocious Utah Jazz rookie with his own sense of history. Mitchell put on a show at Staples Center to win the slam dunk contest and cap off NBA All-Star on Feb. 17.

Mitchell edged Nance Jr. 98-96, sealing his victory with a close approximation of the 360-degree spin dunk that Vince Carter used to win the 2000 contest.

“I wanted this so badly,” Mitchell said. “This is one of my favorite events of All-Star weekend. To not only be in it, but to win it, it’s crazy.”

Before making his winning dunk, Mitchell peeled off his Jazz jersey to reveal a vintage Carter jersey from the Toronto Raptors.

Mitchell - three inches shorter than the 6-foot-6 Carter - needed a score of 47 to beat Nance, and he got a 48 from the five judges: DJ Khaled, Mark Wahlberg, Chris Rock and Hall of Famers Julius Erving and Lisa Leslie.

Earlier, Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns won the 3-point contest with a record 28 points in the final round and Spencer Dinwiddie of the Brooklyn Nets won the skills challenge.

Booker beat 2016 champion Klay Thompson of the Golden State Warriors and Tobias Harris of the Los Angeles Clippers.