Sanders Dunk

satnom

All-American
Jun 28, 2002
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Steve Worthy and Waliyy Dixon were built like athletic tightends and could jump out the gym.

Corey has ups with a smaller stature and the same amount of power. He's fun to watch get up in the air. He's becoming more of a complete player. Love it.

GO RU
 

RutHut_rivals

All-Conference
Aug 11, 2017
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If we're talking strictly dunking or ups, I think Corey is a notch above some others mentioned here. Worthy was solid, could score, and once dunked on me at Deiner Park. Great athlete, but could not jump like Corey. Don't remember Dixon doing much at RU. Yes, obviously a leaper, but not a considerable player at RU. Dantay, same as Worthy. Sam was strictly a defender. Think you need to go back to Copeland as mentioned by Huey. Also had Tom Savage dunk on me in a HS game. I'm good at ducking. For Corey I would barely need to duck.
 

TobyTyler1

Junior
Aug 29, 2013
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good pic from APP

 

G- RUnit

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Sep 13, 2004
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If we're talking strictly dunking or ups, I think Corey is a notch above some others mentioned here. Worthy was solid, could score, and once dunked on me at Deiner Park. Great athlete, but could not jump like Corey. Don't remember Dixon doing much at RU. Yes, obviously a leaper, but not a considerable player at RU. Dantay, same as Worthy. Sam was strictly a defender. Think you need to go back to Copeland as mentioned by Huey. Also had Tom Savage dunk on me in a HS game. I'm good at ducking. For Corey I would barely need to duck.

Disagree on Sam Sanders. While of course he is not in the same conversation with Copeland as a player, he was the best RU dunker I have ever seen. RU fans in the late 70's were more excited by Jammin' James Bailey's dunks than Copeland. Corey and Worthy tied for second. Have seen the Dixon videos but do not recall too many at RU. Savage another guy who deserves more credit. I think Savage and Worthy are on the all time underrated RU team.
 
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RutHut_rivals

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Disagree on Sam Sanders. While of course he is not in the same conversation with Copeland as a player, he was the best RU dunker I have ever seen. RU fans in the late 70's were more excited by Jammin' James Bailey's dunks than Copeland. Corey and Worthy tied for second. Have seen the Dixon videos but do not recall too many at RU. Savage another guy who deserves more credit. I think Savage and Worthy are on the all time underrated RU team.
Agreed Sam had some awesome put-back dunks and could get up similar to Corey. In the late 70's, I was only aware of the "gusto-dunks" of Darryl Dawkins and Dr J.
 

jellyman_rivals307848

All-Conference
Jul 25, 2001
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NCAA didn’t even allowed dunking for half of Copeland’s career.
True - but not relevant. The NCAA banned dunking in 1967, primarily most believe to prevent Lew Alcindor to dominate even more than he would - since he literally could not be stopped from dunking. They rescinded the ban in time for the 1976-77 season - in time for Copeland's Junior season.

That said, James Bailey was the king of RU dunks ... all others are amateurs compared to his dunking ability and frequency.

Other than Bailey, I will let fans debate all the others.

True story: In 1978, Bailey's Junior season, RU was not selected to the NCAA tourney (though I believe they should have been). St. Johns WAS, and faced Louisville in the 1st round of the NCAA. Though that team was not the 1980 team that won the NCAA as the Doctors of Dunk, the Louisville team of 1977-78 was known for its intimidating dunking, and it was widely reported and commented on frequently how many dunks they had as a team ... something like 75-80 dunks, as an entire team, for the entire season. Louie Carnesseca was regularly interviewed about whether his team was scared and intimidated to be playing Louisville, given all those dunks. He famously (to RU fans), laughed, and said something like, "We played against James Bailey of Rutgers, who by himself had twice as many dunks as did the entire Louisville team." Carnesseca DID make that comment, or something like it. And Bailey DID have that many dunks that season - something like 130 dunks, by himself, in ONE season - out of about 310 total FG.
 

G- RUnit

All-American
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It’s a wee bit relevant if he was not even permitted to dunk if trying to determine the best RU dunker of all time. And as you and I have noted, Copeland was not even the best dunker on the team.
 
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RutHut_rivals

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True - but not relevant. The NCAA banned dunking in 1967, primarily most believe to prevent Lew Alcindor to dominate even more than he would - since he literally could not be stopped from dunking. They rescinded the ban in time for the 1976-77 season - in time for Copeland's Junior season.

That said, James Bailey was the king of RU dunks ... all others are amateurs compared to his dunking ability and frequency.

Other than Bailey, I will let fans debate all the others.

True story: In 1978, Bailey's Junior season, RU was not selected to the NCAA tourney (though I believe they should have been). St. Johns WAS, and faced Louisville in the 1st round of the NCAA. Though that team was not the 1980 team that won the NCAA as the Doctors of Dunk, the Louisville team of 1977-78 was known for its intimidating dunking, and it was widely reported and commented on frequently how many dunks they had as a team ... something like 75-80 dunks, as an entire team, for the entire season. Louie Carnesseca was regularly interviewed about whether his team was scared and intimidated to be playing Louisville, given all those dunks. He famously (to RU fans), laughed, and said something like, "We played against James Bailey of Rutgers, who by himself had twice as many dunks as did the entire Louisville team." Carnesseca DID make that comment, or something like it. And Bailey DID have that many dunks that season - something like 130 dunks, by himself, in ONE season - out of about 310 total FG.
130!
Debate over.

This one never gets old to me.

 
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RAC’emUp

All-Conference
Jul 20, 2011
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130!
Debate over.

This one never gets old to me.


By the time DrJ got to the NBA he didn’t get up like he had in the ABA. It’s a tragedy that most of that film is gone.

Bailey is the end of the argument. Kelvin Troy could slam them too. Great leaper, all time RU player.
 

ColonelRutgers

All-American
Dec 15, 2003
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People seem to forget John Battle had some serious “ups” as well as did Steve Wortfy. I’ll never forget the one alley-oop he had, at Jadwyn gym, where his hand was above the backboard to bring the ball down. Completely insane!
This one?


This wasn't bad either...

 

PiscatawayMike

Heisman
Jul 27, 2001
17,339
15,190
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That said, James Bailey was the king of RU dunks ... all others are amateurs compared to his dunking ability and frequency.

Other than Bailey, I will let fans debate all the others.

True story: In 1978, Bailey's Junior season, RU was not selected to the NCAA tourney (though I believe they should have been). St. Johns WAS, and faced Louisville in the 1st round of the NCAA. Though that team was not the 1980 team that won the NCAA as the Doctors of Dunk, the Louisville team of 1977-78 was known for its intimidating dunking, and it was widely reported and commented on frequently how many dunks they had as a team ... something like 75-80 dunks, as an entire team, for the entire season. Louie Carnesseca was regularly interviewed about whether his team was scared and intimidated to be playing Louisville, given all those dunks. He famously (to RU fans), laughed, and said something like, "We played against James Bailey of Rutgers, who by himself had twice as many dunks as did the entire Louisville team." Carnesseca DID make that comment, or something like it. And Bailey DID have that many dunks that season - something like 130 dunks, by himself, in ONE season - out of about 310 total FG.
116 :sunglasses:




Bailey was in good company in 1979...
 
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rutcor

Heisman
Aug 1, 2003
144,396
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I have a distinct recollection of Sam Sanders picking up his dribble at the 3 point line, taking 2 steps and rising up for an angry dunk. It was awesome.
 

GoodOl'Rutgers

Heisman
Sep 11, 2006
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Here's a big size... click on it for big size



And the list of Rutgers players with similar hops is now..

John Battle, Waliyy Dixon, Sam Sanders.. I think some of the others mentioned are not quite where these guys are... but suggest-away.

When jump balls were jump balls.. I saw 6' 2" John Battle jump against UNC's 6'9" Sam Perkins and almost.. almost got it.. missed by 2 inches... audible gasp from the crowd.
 
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