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When did dunking the basketball become legal?

Author

Emily Sparks

Published Jan 14, 2026

Dunking is back

The NCAA's ban on dunks lasted for ten seasons until 1976-1977. During that time, players with above-the-rim skills had to drop in the ball delicately.

When did basketball allow dunking?

In 1944, college basketball saw its first-ever dunk, when Oklahoma A&M's Bob "Foothills" Kurland dunked by accident.

What year did dunking become illegal?

So, in 1967, the NCAA actually decided to ban the dunk, claiming that it was not a “skillful shot” and also citing injury concerns. Whether or not it was a skillful shot was highly debatable and the injuries due to dunking were a very small percentage compared to other injuries that occurred while playing basketball.

Why was dunking illegal?

Many people have attributed the ban to the dominance of the college phenomenon Lew Alcindor (now known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar); the no-dunking rule is sometimes referred to as the "Lew Alcindor rule." Others have attributed the ban to racial motivations, as at the time most of the prominent dunkers in college ...

When was dunking banned in NCAA?

Lew Alcindor, who later became Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, dominated his opponents because he was a master of this move. To limit the player's dominance, the NCAA banned the slam dunk from 1967 to 1976.

40 related questions found

Did Wilt Chamberlain ever make a 3 pointer?

NBA legend Wilt Chamberlain would have turned 77 years old today. He holds 71 NBA records, 62 of them by himself, including most points in a game (100), most rebounds in a game (55) and most minutes per game in a season (48.53, thanks to overtime).

What was Wilt Chamberlain's vertical?

Basketball – Wilt Chamberlain (48 inches/1.22m) and Michael Jordan (46 inches/1.17m) Wilt “The Stilt” Chamberlain owns the highest vertical jump in NBA history, reaching a height of 48 inches.

What rules did the NBA change because of Wilt?

These rules changed included widening the lane, instituting offensive goaltending and revising rules governing inbounding the ball and shooting free throws (Chamberlain would leap with the ball from behind the foul line to deposit the ball in the basket).

When was the offensive 3 second rule implemented in the NBA?

The three-second rule was introduced in 1936 and was expressed as such: no offensive player, with or without the ball, could remain in the key, for three seconds or more.

What is the hack a Shaq rule?

More specifically, teams are trying the “Hack-A-Shaq” strategy — the strategy of intentionally fouling the opposing team's worst free-throw shooter named after Shaquille O'Neal. O'Neal, during his prime, was so dominant as an interior scorer that fouling him was seemingly the best way to slow him down.

What age did Wilt retire?

Wilt was such a basketball force that many believed that he could play at the highest level, even years after his retirement. This belief almost realized in 1986, 13 years after he retired when he was 51 years old.

What is Shaq's vertical leap?

He recorded the highest maximum vertical reach ever measured in pre-draft workouts. He could extend 12 feet, 5 inches from a standing position.

What was Muggsy Bogues vertical?

First, with a reported 44 inch vertical jump, he would be able to get above the rim and dunk a basketball. Second, Muggsy Bogues himself has claimed he could dunk on numerous occassions.

What is LeBron vertical?

A Place Above the Rim

With his vertical leap reportedly measuring in at somewhere north of 40 inches (the NBA average is in the high 20s), King James is able to launch his 6-foot-8-inch, 250-pound frame with seeming ease.

Who was the only player in the NBA to score 100 points in a game?

On March 2, 1962, Wilt Chamberlain set the NBA single-game scoring record by tallying 100 points for the Philadelphia Warriors in a 169-147 victory over the New York Knicks. Not 98 points, not 102, but a nice, round 100 — an imposing record set by a most imposing player.

Is there a quintuple double in basketball?

While double-doubles and triple-doubles occur regularly each NBA season, only four quadruple-doubles have ever officially been recorded in the NBA, and a quintuple-double has only ever been recorded at the high school girls' level.

Did Kareem ever make a 3?

It's easy to forget, but the greatest scorer in the history of the NBA wasn't known as a threat from the outside, but that doesn't mean Kareem Abdul-Jabar never shot three-pointers. He was 1-for-18 in his career, but the lone three-pointer he made in his career was a shot from the corner off of a long rebound.

How long was dunking banned in the NBA?

While it became a standard move in the NBA by the 1970s, dunking was banned in the NCAA for nine years when Kareem Abdul-Jabbar became the first superstar to regularly dunk the ball. He dominated so thoroughly that officials decided dunking gave teams an unfair advantage.

How many dunks does Steph Curry have?

Looking at Stephen Curry's dunk statistics

He has a total of 26 dunks in his 13-year career and the last time he did so was in the 2018-19 season.

Can anyone in NBA not dunk?

Apart from JJ Barea, there are a few other NBA players who have not dunked in their NBA career. The list included players like Patty Mills, Isaiah Thomas and Jameer Nelson. All of these players are above the average height for an NBA player.