Top 5 Dunks in Golden State Warriors’ History

The Golden Warriors have had many highfliers throughout their 53 seasons in the Bay Area including: Mitch Richmond, Latrell Sprewell, Anthony Randolph, Jason Richardson, and Baron Davis among many others. Although lifelong Warrior fans have endured some pain over the years, fans who have packed Oracle arena every day despite the rough patches have been rewarded with some awesome dunks over the years. Let’s take a look at the top 5 dunks in Golden State Warriors history:

5. Harrison Barnes puts Pek on a Poster

This dunk right here is how HB introduced himself to Dub Nation in 2012. Entering his rookie season out of UNC, the 7th pick was praised for his athleticism and Wolves’ center Nikola Pekovic witnessed this first hand. What makes this dunk even sweeter is the mini flex/stare down Barnes gives Pek before heading back down to the defensive end. Hopefully we see the same confidence in Barnes this coming season. More from Barnes later.

4. Monta Dunks on Future Warrior

When Monta Ellis was traded for Andrew Bogut, Warriors’ fans booed owner Joe Lacob. Ellis thrived in Don Nelson‘s Run N’ Gun offensive system, and his athleticism and high flying ability was on display on this dunk in 2006. The Warriors and Suns were two of the top offenses in the league at the time, and Ellis finished as the leading scorer (31) in a 113-110 shootout with the Suns. Ellis spent seven seasons with the Warriors, and his departure in 2012 would usher in the championship era that would include the man he dunked on in this clip.

3. J-Rich 2003 Dunk Contest Clincher

Jason Richardson won the dunk contest in back to back seasons in ’02 and ’03, cementing himself as not only one of the best dunkers of his generation, but also one of the best dunkers in NBA history. The new Atlanta Hawk Richardson amazed fans with the relative ease he pulled off his dunks, whether it be in game or in contest, no matter the degree of difficulty. The above dunk is arguably the best dunk in contest history, and one of the many reasons why dunk stars in today’s game have busted out the vintage J-Rich jersey for their own dunks.

2. HB Putback Over LBJ in Game 5 of 2015 Finals

This one must have felt good for Barnes. After being relatively ineffective when tasked with guarding LeBron James throughout the series, Barnes was able to come through with a huge putback dunk over LeBron as the first half was about to end. When I was brainstorming a list of dunks that I might include in this piece, there was no doubt in my mind this dunk was going to be highly ranked. This sequence embodied the theme of the ’15 Finals…the Warriors using role players and depth to edge the best player in the world, who put up 40 points, 14 boards and 11 assists in Game 5.

1. Baron Davis Ends AK47

Duh. Every Warriors’ fan (age permitting) knows where they were when this happened. This dunk was what the “We Believe” era was all about. After a 13 year hiatus from the playoffs, the Warriors upset the top seeded, 67-win Mavericks in the first round, and moved on to face the up and coming Jazz squad in the semi finals. This dunk by Davis had the Bay Area actually believing they could make some real noise, although they would be eliminated in five games. So enjoy this clip of my all-time favorite Warrior making one of the more iconic plays in NBA playoff history. Bet you can’t just watch once!

Next: Harrison Barnes vs Michael Kidd-Gilchrist

More from Blue Man Hoop