Depending on who you ask, John Starks is remembered for different reasons. Some would say he was the guy who cost the New York Knicks an NBA title in 1994, while others would argue that he’s a true Knicks legend. However, the man in question believes he is best remembered for his “The Dunk” on Michael Jordan.
In fact, Starks still vividly recalls how his iconic play went down. He was asked to talk about it while in the Middle East for the NBA Abu Dhabi games. To this day, the former Knickerbocker can still recall almost every notable detail about it by heart.
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Even though Starks would understandably never forget that moment, he still kept a receipt of the play where he posterized Jordan. According to the former Knicks guard, a portrait of it is displayed inside his house.
“It was pure adrenaline when I went for that dunk,” Starks recently told Esquire Middle East. “I think they even measured it as 42 [inches] – which is probably my highest jump ever. I remember the game was on the line, and that play needed to happen. It became an iconic moment in Knicks Basketball, and I even have a big painting of it in my house.”
Why Starks’ The Dunk is iconic
To better understand the significance of ‘The Dunk’, one must take a quick trip down memory lane. It happened in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Knicks and the Chicago Bulls in 1993.
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The Knicks were on a roll and beat the Bulls in the opening game of the series. Game 2 was a very close contest as the Bulls refused to let the Knicks get an effortless and commanding 2-0 lead without a fight.
With just over 50 seconds remaining on the game clock, the Knicks were up by three, 91-88. Starks got past BJ Armstrong from the right wing and drove hard to the baseline. He then finished his play with a sensational left-handed dunk on Horace Grant and Michael Jordan.
Starks’ The Dunk helped lift the Knicks to another playoff win. Even though the Bulls went on to beat New York in the next four games, Starks’ The Dunk served as a reminder that at one point, the Knicks looked like they could eliminate Jordan and the mighty Bulls.
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When Starks almost did The Dunk again
Interestingly, Starks almost recreated The Dunk during a playoff game against the Indiana Pacers years later. However, Starks realized right then and there that he no longer possessed the leaping ability that enabled him to perform one of the greatest plays in Knicks history.
“Game 7 against the Indiana Pacers. The game was on the line, and I was just coming off knee surgery, and I remember I had a pick and roll with me and Patrick [Ewing]. In my mind I’m trying to recreate ‘The Dunk’ again, I was seeing the same thing happening,” Starks recalled in an interview in 2019 via Metro.
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“I went up and the hops weren’t there! I went up against Dale Davis. I was going to go up left and I had to change it and all I could do was get it up off the board and I missed the shot,” he recalled. “Here comes Patrick, out of nowhere, to save me and dunk it back in.”
It is no wonder Starks has a painting of The Dunk in his house. Anyone would do the same to immortalize the moment of their athletic pinnacle, especially if they put MJ on a poster for the ages.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Oct 3, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
