Retired Players I Loved To Watch #7 (He competed in the Slam Dunk Contest the year Kobe won)

Darvin Ham

He didn't have any actual basketball skills -- couldn't shoot, dribble, pass, or drive. He was strictly a run-and-jump athlete, a track and field player that somehow stumbled upon a bball court.

But he was one of the best leapers I've ever seen. He dunked like a monster. Check out the picture to the left, he was known for breaking backboards at Texas Tech. I always assumed that getting dunked on by Darvin must've felt like the end of the world; must've felt like the entire sky was crashing down on you. I could understand how he could get so much elevation (he was sleek and aerodynamic) but it always amazed me how someone so skinny could generate that kind of strength and power. His dunks were so nasty that it earned him the immortal nickname "Ham Slamwich."

He bounced around the league, playing for Milwaukee, Washington, and Atlanta. He even won a championship with Detroit, I think. He was a liability because he was so one-dimensional, and he was never more than a situational role player. But watching him bang on people's heads, in traffic, was always exciting.

And for the record, he wasn't a team's roster last season, so for all intents and purposes, I'm considered him "retired."

Darvin Ham's career statistics