Toni Kukoc with the Dr. J FT dunk, 1991...

[bwink23]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSVS0rC30ds

:cheers:

6'11" and white...not bad

[TheMan]

Kukoc was a white freak of nature, 6"11, nice passer with great court vision, could handle the ball like a PG and solid 3pt shooter, really underrated...unfortunatly, like most European players, his D was not very good and was considered soft.I loved him on the Bulls:bowdown:

[rodman91]

Toni Kukoc would be somewhere between allstar & superstar level in today's game.

Take '09 Hedo Turkoglu's game and make it maximum and give him better athleticism, you got Toni Kukoc.

[Rake2204]

Actually not a bad free throw line dunk. I was expecting a Pippen or Bender-like slam, where it's finished with a stretch and not much flair. Props to Mr. Kukoc.

[julizaver]

Toni Kukoc was my favorite player when playing in Europe. He won almost every major tournament he participated during 1989 and 1993 with MVP performances.
Nowadays it seems that there is a lack of talent not only in NBA but in Europe also, if he was 25 nowadays he certainly will be an All-star. He happens to play in one of the best teams in NBA history, if not the best.
The 80s and 90s were maybe the Golden years of basketball.

[97 bulls]

Actually not a bad free throw line dunk. I was expecting a Pippen or Bender-like slam, where it's finished with a stretch and not much flair. Props to Mr. Kukoc.
What was wrong with pippens dunk? He actually took off from the line.

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/watch?v=yB0qWqBsMBc

[97 bulls]

Toni Kukoc would be somewhere between allstar & superstar level in today's game.

Take '09 Hedo Turkoglu's game and make it maximum and give him better athleticism, you got Toni Kukoc.
I've always said kukoc was on the same line as chris bosh as far as stature. Their games were different, but there's no doubt in my mind that had kukoc had his own team, he would've been a 20/5/8 player in the nba in his prime. With a few all-star game appearance and all-nba second and third teams. And he's a bonafide hofer.


Nice find bwink

[Kblaze8855]

He almost did it at the end of the 97 finals too.

[Rake2204]

I'm not sure I'd agree there's a lack of talent nowadays in comparison to the 90's (in particular the late 90's). I mean, I could see it easily argued as such, but I don't think that's why Toni Kukoc wasn't an All-Star. I think he missed All-Star appearances for one simple reason: he happened to play for one of the greatest teams in NBA history, largely behind one of the greatest small forwards in NBA history (as well as one of the best power forwards in NBA history. . .and one of the best shooting guards in NBA history).

If you throw Toni Kukoc onto, say, the mid to late 90's Cavaliers, where he's battling Chris Mills for playing time instead of complementing Scottie Pippen, I'd see Kukoc putting up All-Star numbers on a regular basis. Similarly, if prime Kukoc played for the 2012 Pistons, he'd be dropping heavy numbers but if he were in OKC playing behind Kevin Durant the numbers again wouldn't be eye popping.

Essentially, I laud Toni Kukoc for accepting his role in Chicago. He could have easily stuck to his guns and demanded to be traded on numerous occasions in order to find a team who'd be more willing to spotlight his talent. Instead, he appeared willing to take that aforementioned talent and fit it into the Bulls system. It's tough to find a 20+ppg talent who's willing to fit into a limited role.

Also, not a Bulls fan, but I love that Kukoc buzzer beater: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yjeBPPIp_8


What was wrong with pippens dunk? He actually took off from the line.

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/watch?v=yB0qWqBsMBc
I've always respected the distance (he was further back that a lot of folks) but the style was sort of plain. It was less "soaring" and more "palming with extremely long hands, arm, and body while reaching and extending for the finish". That's not to fault Pippen, for my dunk range is about 8 feet and in. I was just saying he didn't provide a ton of flair.

[TheMan]

That game winner by Toni vs the Knicks was among his best highlights and Pippen's biggest lowlights, was angry at Pip at the time for acting like a baby but 3 more titles later, all is forgiven.:applause:

[Lebron23]

Jordan, Pippen and Kukoc dunked from the free throw line.

[Psileas]

He did it twice, actually:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zj3Q55bcLaQ

[hitmanyr2k]

Actually not a bad free throw line dunk. I was expecting a Pippen or Bender-like slam, where it's finished with a stretch and not much flair. Props to Mr. Kukoc.

Pippen's degree of difficulty was greater. Dribbling the ball into the free throw line dunk is a hell of a lot harder than just running with the ball and getting a head of steam.

[pauk]

:bowdown:

[inclinerator]

stacked

[Rake2204]

Pippen's degree of difficulty was greater. Dribbling the ball into the free throw line dunk is a hell of a lot harder than just running with the ball and getting a head of steam.Kind of weird to see this thread brought back up after three years, but I was referring to Kukoc's dunk style, not the outright difficulty.

Any free throw line dunk is impressive, really. But in terms of style, Pippen's and Bender's may have lacked a little in that regard, as they were both more about making the dunk than making the dunk look good (similar with Ibaka). Obviously, when one takes off from as far out as they did, that's understandable.

It's three years later now, but I'm guessing I figured Kukoc would have been an "extend by any means just to make it" type of guy. Instead, it looks like he didn't even really begin running until half court, then elevated comfortably enough to add some soaring style during the process.

It wasn't meant as a slight toward Pippen. It was more so just a means of saying, "Wow, nice Toni - that looked better than I thought it would."

[3ball]

People forget that Toni Kukoc's scoring and assists were barely affected when Jordan came back in 1996.. it's remarkable his numbers stayed nearly the same with the highest scoring average ever back in the lineup... Same thing for Pippen actually..

Unlike ball-dominant players that turn guys like Kukocs into spot-up shooters and play-finishers, Kukocs retained his play-making responsibilities alongside Jordan's off-ball play, so his scoring only declined from 15.7 ppg to 13.1 ppg when Jordan came back in 1996, and his per 36 scoring actually increased (17.7 to 18.2).