Los Angeles Lakers forward Larry Nance Jr. had one of the dunks of the year last week when he crossed over a Brooklyn Nets player and then rose above center Brook Lopez for the dunk, getting the crowd at the Barclays Center on their feet.
Nance Jr. is not the only one in his family that can dunk like that though, as his father and former NBA player Larry Nance Sr. was also known for his leaping ability in his NBA career that spanned from 1981-94.
After the dunk over Lopez, many began comparing Nance to his dad, wondering who the better dunker is.
Nance Sr. answered that question though, saying that dunk got Nance Jr. past him, via Tania Ganguli of the LA Times:
“He never got higher than me until the Brooklyn dunk,” Larry Nance said. “So officially he got past me. I thought it was pretty good. It was the best one I’ve seen. Seemed like he took off too far. When he took off I was like, he’ll never make it. He just kept going and going. Pretty impressive.”
Nance, like his father, is not just a dunked though, as he makes an impact on both ends of the floor every game he plays. The Lakers snapped an eight-game losing streak Friday night by defeating the Philadelphia 76ers.
While Nance Jr. had just four points in the game, Lakers head coach Luke Walton said he was the most impactful player on the floor for Los Angeles.
The 23-year-old finished the game with 11 rebounds, two blocks, an assist and a steal in 34 minutes off the bench.
Nance Jr. has been an essential part of the Lakers bench unit that is the best in the league. He got the chance to play in the city that Nance Sr. called home for most of his NBA career Saturday when the Lakers faced the Cleveland Cavaliers. He followed up his impressive performance against the 76ers with two points, five rebounds, three assists and a block against his dad’s former team.