The NBA unveiled the field for the 2026 AT&T Slam Dunk on Thursday, announcing four first-time participants who will compete during NBA All-Star Saturday Night on Feb. 14 at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. The event will air beginning at 5 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock.
San Antonio Spurs forward Carter Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers center Jaxson Hayes, Miami Heat forward Keshad Johnson and Orlando Magic guard Jase Richardson will headline this year’s dunk contest, which is guaranteed to produce a new champion. All four players will be making their Slam Dunk debuts.
Two rookies are part of the field in Bryant and Richardson. Bryant, a 6-foot-6 forward selected 14th overall in the 2025 NBA Draft, has quickly established himself as an explosive athlete for the Spurs. Richardson, a 6-foot-1 guard taken 25th overall by Orlando, brings a familiar name to the competition as the son of two-time Slam Dunk champion Jason Richardson, who won the event in 2002 and 2003.
Hayes enters his seventh NBA season and third with the Lakers, offering rare size at 7 feet in a contest traditionally dominated by guards and wings. Johnson, a 6-foot-6 forward, is in his second NBA season after splitting time last year between the Heat and their G League affiliate in Sioux Falls, and has emerged as one of Miami’s most intriguing above-the-rim athletes.
The AT&T Slam Dunk will follow a two-round format. All four competitors will perform two dunks in the opening round, with judges’ scores combined to determine the top two finishers. Those finalists will advance to the final round, where two more dunks each will decide the winner based on the highest combined score.
