By Mallory Mattingly
Miami Heat forward Keshad Johnson took home the trophy for the 2026 NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Contest, attributing the win to God.
“Man, first and foremost, I wanna thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for allowing me to be here,” Johnson said in an interview after the trophy presentation, per Christhlete. “You know, everybody’s journey is different. To all the kids out there, keep dreaming. Have crazy faith. Crazy faith, not just regular faith. Have crazy faith. Anything can happen, man.”
“But I just came out here and showed the people who Showtime was, you know, had all the legends out. I’m from California. Brought my own barrier swag to LA. We all won. This is for the whole West Coast right here, baby,” the forward added.
Related: NBA All-Star Promises His New Sports Movie Will ‘Resonate with Families’
Johnson wasn’t favored to win the contest, but he stunned the crowd when he took off from 10 feet in front of the rim, jumped over rapper E40 and slammed the ball into the rim to seal the win.
In the post-contest press conference, Johnson once again referenced his “crazy faith” in God.
“Man, I’m just so grateful to be here. You know, I consider this home. I’m from the West Coast, from Oakland, California. This is home to me. The West Coast — we got a swag. We got a flavor. I felt like I was at home,” the Miami Heat forward said. “So when I saw everybody, seeing the fans, it was like what I dreamed of. Once you’re in a dream, you can control your dream. You could do anything in your dream. So I just felt like the fans were with me, and I just did what I did. Put my best foot forward. Did what I could do.”
“I can’t thank the Lord enough. I beat the odds. I made it into the NBA. And I dreamed of every year I was watching the NBA dunk contest,” the champion exclaimed later on in the interview. “I dreamed of being out there putting on a show for everybody. I learned from all the people who came before me, paying homage to them. And now that I’m here, I had to have crazy faith to be here and be in this position and just glorify the name of the Lord for having Keshaun ‘Showtime’ Johnson to be out here in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest and coming home with the championship.”
It’s clear that Johnson is grateful to God for his win.
Questions or comments? Please write to us here.
– Content: +1Share:
– Content: +1