Three-time Sprite Slam Dunk champion Nate “KryptoNate” Robinson will not be coming back to defend his crown at this year’s edition.

So is former champ Dwight “Superman” Howard. Lebron James egged by many to participate don’t want to join too.

One player most fans want to see has fortunately accepted the invitation though: the LA Clippers’ Blake Griffin.

Other players who have suited are the Milwaukee Bucks’ Brandon Jennings, the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Serge Ibaka and the Washington Wizards’ JaVale McGee.

With that quality of opponents, Blake Griffin is the hands-down favorite to win the 2011 NBA Slam Dunk Contest.

If you have been living under the rock, check out Blake Griffin’s highlight dunks. This early, he has already been named as one of the top three best dunkers of all time!

Take note that he is not just a dunker as the first pick of the 2009 NBA Draft currently has racked up 21-straight double-doubles and is on pace to become the first rookie since The Big Shamrock to average 20-points and 12-rebounds in their rookie campaign.

JaVale McGee dunk highlights:

Brandon Jennings dunk highlights:

Serge Ibaka dunk highlights:

GUIDELINES:

The two dunkers with the highest first round scores will advance to the final round. The dunker with the lowest total score from the first round will compete first in the final round. Dunks then will alternate until each player has completed two. Time limit rules still apply. In the final round, fan voting polls will open via SMS TXT message and at NBA.com. The combined results from SMS TXT voting and NBA.com will determine the champion.

Watch the 2011 NBA Sprite Slam Dunk Contest on NBA All-Star Saturday Night, February 19, 2011 at the Staples Center, Los Angeles, California, USA.

The Sprite Slam Dunk is part of NBA All-Star 2011, which also includes the T-Mobile Rookie Challenge & Youth Jam, NBA All-Star Saturday Night presented by State Farm featuring the Foot Locker Three-Point Contest, Haier Shooting Stars and Taco Bell Skills Challenge; NBA All-Star Jam Session presented by Adidas; and the 60th NBA All-Star Game.

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UPDATE January 19, 2011: Brandon Jennings, has withdrawn as a contestant in the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest.

He will be replaced by Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan – the runner-up in last year’s Sprite Slam Dunk Contest.

Check out more details at Sekou Smith’s Hang Time Blog.

UPDATE February 20, 2011: Blake Griffin wins the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest!

Please read my related posts:

1. Blake Griffin Wins 2011 NBA Slam Dunk Contest By Jumping Over A Car! Even before the 2011 NBA Slam Dunk Contest has begun, many have already proclaimed LA Clippers forward Blake Griffin as the hands-down favorite to take home the crown this year. After all, he has already been named as one of...
2. Guy Dupuy Puts Blake Griffin’s Car Dunk To Shame To make the NBA Slam Dunk contest more unforgettable and fun, they should let these amateur ballers with amazing hops participate next year. Last year, the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest (for NBA players) was upstaged by Sprite Slam Dunk Showdown...
3. 2010-11 NBA Season | Blake Griffin’s Dunk Compilation Video To say that Blake Griffin can dunk is a gross understatement! While Shaquille O’Neal is a power dunker and Michael Jordan a graceful dunker, Griffin is a combination of both. Ever since his first official NBA basket came on an...
4. 2010-11 NBA Season | Blake Griffin Scores Career High 47 Points! The High Griffinition is certainly having a super-rookie season. In the LA Clippers 114-107 win against the Indiana Pacers today, Blake Griffin scored a career high 47 points! That also happens to be the current NBA-best eclipsing Monta Ellis previous...
5. Blake Griffin Named As 2011 NBA Rookie of the Year In a unanimous vote, Blake Griffin is chosen as the best rookie for the 2010-11 NBA season bagging the Rookie of the Year Award. Selected as the #1 overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers,...
6. 2010-11 NBA Season | Blake Griffin Finally Has A Nickname: High Griffinition NBA superstars are usually given nicknames based on their play on and off the court. There’s Kobe’s Black Mamba and Lebron’s  King James. There’s even amusing ones like Glen “Big Baby” Davis and Dwight “Foul on You” Howard. Then, there’s...
7. 2010-11 NBA Season | Blake Griffin’s Ridiculous Poster Dunk Selected by the LA Clippers as the first pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, Blake Griffin’s rookie campaign was put on hold when he broke his left kneecap during the Clippers’ final exhibition game against New Orleans. Finally healthy, Griffin...
8. KryptoNate Becomes First 3-Time NBA Slam Dunk Champ Nate “KryptoNate” Robinson successfully defended the crown he captured when he jumped over the 6’11″ Dwight “Superman” Howard in last year’s Sprite Slam Dunk contest. In this year’s NBA Slam Dunk Contest 2010 edition, Nate despite standing only 5 feet...
9. 2011-12 NBA Season | Blake Griffin’s Dunk of the Year Over Kendrick Perkins Last year, Rookie of the Year Blake Griffin made the most spectacular dunk of the NBA season when he dunked over Timofey Mozgov. [NOTE: He made 213 other dunks for the season.] Just when you thought he couldn’t do one...
10. 2010-11 NBA Season | Blake Griffin’s Spectacular Offensive Foul Dunk This one was reminiscent of the dunk Blake Griffin pulled off Timofey Mozgov. In the LA Clippers’ 108-99 loss to the Phoenix Suns, Griffin made Suns center Marcin Gortat his launching pad as he jumped just outside the restricted area;...

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Tags: 2011 NBA all-star, 2011 NBA season, blake griffin, brandon jennings, demar derozan, dunk, javale mcgee, nate robinson, serge ibaka