Stars like Julius Erving and Michael Jordan popularized NBA All-Star festivities through their participation in dunk contests.
With Lebron James sidelined Saturday, the NBA faithful had to settle for the next best thing: Nate Robinson.
Robinson ignited a rare roar from a mostly quiet crowd to pass Jordan, Dominique Wilkins and Jason Richardson as the only three-time NBA All Star Slam Dunk Champion.
The uncanny leaping ability of the 5-foot-9 guard brought home wins in last year's contest and in 2006.
Robinson stole the show with a breathtaking reverse slam off the backboard where he brought the ball back down to his knees in mid-air before jamming it home.
That final dunk secured him 51 percent of the fan vote.
The dunk highlighted what seemed to be a comparatively dull contest, evidenced by the lack of reaction from the crowd.
"Something has to be done about the Slam Dunk Contest," said TNT analyst Charles Barkley on the telecast following the contest.
Robinson appeared in the final with Portland's DeMar DeRozan, winner of the first ever dunk-in Friday that determined the final contestant.
Charlotte's Gerald Wallace and the Lakers' Shannon Brown were eliminated in the first round of this year's contest, which featured a lesser amount of dunks than previous years.
Earlier in the night, Paul Pierce took home his first Three Point Shootout crown with 20 points in the final round, edging Golden State's Stephen Curry (17) and Denver's Chauncey Billups (14).
Defending champion Daequan Cook was eliminated in the first round along with New York's Danilo Gallinari and Phoenix's Channing Frye.
Steve Nash won the Skills Contest with a time of 29.9 seconds in the final round over Dallas native and 2008 champion Deron Williams.
Milwaukee rookie Brandon Jennings and Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook were eliminated earlier.
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