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The last time a regular NBA roster player won the Slam Dunk Contest was in 2022. However, rising stars Matas Buzelis from Chicago and Stephon Castle from San Antonio are determined to shake things up and bring home the title.

The two rookies have accepted invites to be part of the Slam Dunk Contest on All-Star Saturday night (according to reports from

Chris Haynes

ESPN’s Shams Charania

Buzelis, the No. 11 pick of the Bulls last June, was part of All-Star weekend last year in Indianapolis as one of the G-League players in the Rising Stars competition. This season he's come off the bench for about 13 minutes a night for Chicago, averaging 4.9 points a game.

.@BuzelisMatas can get

The best dunks from his rookie season so far pic.twitter.com/COKWEbAqtT

— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) December 18, 2024

Castle, the No. 4 pick of the Spurs out of UConn, looks like a First Tean All-Rookie player so far this season averaging 11.6 points and 3.6 assists a game as he learns to play next to Victor Wembanyama. He has been hot of late, scoring 20+ points in three of his last four games.

Stephon Castle with a powerful dunk (with a replay) pic.twitter.com/BwoFSQsk1R

— MrBuckBuck (@MrBuckBuckNBA) December 25, 2024

The Dunk Contest will be part of All-Star Saturday night, also featuring the Skills Competition, the 3-Point Contest, and this year an expected (and expanded) 3-point rematch between Stephen Curry and Sabrina Ionescu.