Shaq Turns Dunking Into a League of Its Own This Summer
Shaquille O’Neal, known to the world as Shaq, has a new title. Commissioner. The four-time NBA champion recorded roughly 4,000 dunks in his career and now he is launching DUNKMAN, the first professional dunking league in history. The league debuts this summer with key partners TNT Sports, Authentic Brands Group, and Eli Lilly and Company […] The post Shaq Turns Dunking Into a League of Its Own This Summer first appeared on Upscale Magazine.
Black News 
Shaquille O’Neal, known to the world as Shaq, has a new title. Commissioner.
The four-time NBA champion recorded roughly 4,000 dunks in his career and now he is launching DUNKMAN, the first professional dunking league in history. The league debuts this summer with key partners TNT Sports, Authentic Brands Group, and Eli Lilly and Company (a pharmaceutical company).
Shaq has always been about his business. BIG Business, that is. His diverse portfolio includes 24 Hour Fitness (investor in over 40 locations), Big Chicken (his own restaurant chain), over 150 car washes across the country, and longtime partnerships with Reebok, Papa John’s, and Boys & Girls Club. The list goes on. The list goes on. And ON. DUNKMAN is no different.
The season features 24 dunkers competing across four group-stage events.
Shaq made the announcement live during the National Championship pregame show on TNT’s Inside the NBA, alongside castmates Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, and Charles Barkley.
A show called The Dunk King that Shaq was involved with back in 2018 pulled over 200 million views online. He took ownership of that concept, built it into the DUNKMAN television series last year and let that momentum carry him to the league he envisioned.
“Since the NBA guys don’t have enough pride to give the fans what we want in the dunk contest, I said to myself, along with Lily and TNT, I am going to have a dunk league,” O’Neal said.
Each event determines who advances to the DUNKMAN World Championship, where the winner takes home $500,000. Yes, you read that right.
A panel of judges scores each dunk using an Olympic-style format that separates difficulty from execution, holding athletes to a standard that rewards both ambition and precision.
The league fills a gap that O’Neal has long recognized. Not every athlete who can dunk at an elite level makes it to the NBA. DUNKMAN gives those athletes a professional platform, real competition, and a path to build a career around what they do.
“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.”
Live events will air on TNT, TBS, truTV, and HBO Max. Additional content will run on Bleacher Report, House of Highlights, and YouTube.
Fans can track city announcements, athlete reveals, ticket dates, and broadcast details at www.dunkman.com and on social media at @dunkmanofficial.
The post Shaq Turns Dunking Into a League of Its Own This Summer first appeared on Upscale Magazine.
