The NBA’s Summer League in Las Vegas is just getting started, but Johnny Furphy has already laid claim to what should easily go down as the dunk of the event.
Furphy, after weaving his way up the court in the second quarter of the Indiana Pacers’ matchup with the Bulls, cocked back and threw down a wild one-handed slam over Chicago rookie Noa Essengue on Monday afternoon at Cox Pavillion in Las Vegas.
The replay and photos that came out of it were somehow even better.
Essengue was taken by the Bulls took out of France with the No. 12 overall pick in the draft earlier this summer. He didn’t stand a chance on the play.
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Furphy is fresh off his rookie season in the league last season with the Pacers, who he helped reach the NBA Finals. After being selected with the No. 35 overall pick out of Kansas in the 2024 NBA Draft, Furphy averaged just shy of eight minutes per game last season for the Pacers. He averaged 14.3 points in the 10 games he played with their G League affiliate, too.
Furphy had 11 points at halftime on Monday night. He finished with 15 points and shot 5-of-9 from the field in the Pacers’ 114-105 loss to the Bulls. Essengue finished with 21 points for Chicago.
While there is plenty of time left for someone to go after the “Dunk of the Summer League” title, Furphy has set the bar incredibly high. That poster, which Essengue somehow already found himself on the wrong side of, is going to be very hard to beat.
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