Darnell Hillman with one of the First Windmill Dunks in NBA History
With no traditional windmills being completed in the 1976 ABA Slam Dunk Contest, this Darnell Hillman windmill variant—more similar to a Terrence Williams flush than a Dominique or J-Rich—may very well be the first televised windmill dunk in NBA history.
The clip above comes from a preliminary round of the 1977 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. Yes, contrary to popular belief, Phoenix Suns forward Larry Nance is not the NBA's first ever slam dunk champion. That title belongs to Hillman (aka Dr. Dunk), who advanced from the preliminary round above and eventually defeated Larry McNeil in the finals, capping a season-long dunk contest featuring one dunker from each NBA team duking it out in regional dunk battles for the right to nab the $15,000 top prize.
Hillman's full preliminary effort can be seen here: • Darnell Hillman (Champion) - First Round o...