Vince Carter's Slam Dunk Contest show still the gold standard

Vince Carter’s virtuoso performance in the 2000 Slam Dunk Contest in Oakland stands has few rivals when it comes to memorable NBA moments from the recent past. All five dunks of Carter's dunks immediately jumped into the discussion for best of all-time. The execution was flawless. The creativity was breathtaking (He stuck his arm right through the hoop!) The atmosphere in the building was nothing short of electric.

Carter's basketball brilliance that night has inspired multiple forms of sportswriting poetry. Yahoo's Ball Don't Lie Dunk History series gave it the proper treatment it deserves while Sportsnet, ESPN, and CBS Sports have also spilled out thousands of words in an attempt to relive it. They're all worth checking out.

Why? Because all these years later, Carter’s masterpiece remains the gold standard for slam show excellence. It's been a challenge for anyone to come up with anything that even approaches it.

To be fair, there are also some factors that are out of their control, a product of time and place that simply can't be reproduced. Carter was expected to singlehandedly resuscitate the dunk contest after a two-year hiatus and he managed to exceed the hype and in the process, ramped up Toronto Raptors fever locally to another level while taking his own status from star to superstar.

Reigning dunk champion Zach LaVine will defend his title Saturday in Toronto with Pistons big man Andre Drummond, Nuggets energy guy Will Barton, and Magic sophomore Aaron Gordon rounding out the foursome that will take the floor. LaVine put forth a dynamic effort in the 2015 competition, and the ease he executed his slams even evoked memories of Carter. Of course, that was the first place everyone's minds went.

Perhaps just as impressive as his slam dunk showing as a sophomore, is that Carter is still in the league 16 years later. Over the course of the last few years he remodeled his game, going from the high-flying, high-scoring All-Star to a useful role player. Now 39 and in his second season coming off the bench for the Memphis Grizzlies, he plans to play for at least another couple years.

Carter isn't going away yet, and his slamming mystic will live long after he retires. What do this year's dunk contest contestants have in store for the fans this weekend? What we know for sure is that it still comes back to one question: how does it compare to Carter? We wish them the best of luck.

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Israel Fehr is a writer for Yahoo Canada Sports. Email him at israelfehr@yahoo.ca or follow him on Twitter. Follow @israelfehr