SHAQUILLE O’Neal wants to find the best dunker in the world.
O’Neal — who had roughly 4,000 dunks in his NBA career, including playoffs — announced on Monday (Tuesday in Manila) that he’s the founder and inaugural commissioner of Dunkman, which he’s touting as the first professional league for dunking.
It follows a Dunkman television series, which aired last year. The league, O’Neal said, will look to build off the popularity of that six-episode series.
In a partnership with TNT Sports, O’Neal’s new league will have five live events — four group stage competitions, followed by a title event — featuring 24 dunkers from around the world. At stake: the title of world champion, along with $500,000.
“These athletes are innovators, and Dunkman is going to give them a global stage, real stakes and a chance to build careers doing what they love,” O’Neal said. “We are transforming dunking from a one-night contest to the fastest-growing professional sport off two feet.”
The league’s events will air across a variety of platforms, including TNT, TBS, truTV and HBO Max, along with some social channels.
The league said it will use “an Olympic-level scoring system that sets a modern standard for professional dunking,” featuring a panel of expert judges.