Shaq’s next big leap: turning dunking into a league

Shaquille O'Neal is taking another swing at the sport that made some of his highlights look unfair. On Monday night, the Hall of Famer said he is the founder and first commissioner of Dunkman, a new league he says is the first professional competition devoted entirely to dunking.

O'Neal, who finished his NBA career with roughly 4,000 dunks including playoff games, said the goal is simple enough: find the best dunker in the world. Not just in a one-night showcase, but in something with structure, stakes and, naturally, a prize package large enough to get attention.

From TV special to full league

Dunkman follows a six-episode television series that aired last year. O'Neal said the new league is meant to build on that momentum and turn the concept into something more durable than a one-off contest that disappears before everyone has found the remote.

The league is being launched in partnership with TNT Sports and will feature five live events in total: four group-stage competitions, then a title event. In all, 24 dunkers from around the world will compete for the championship and $500,000.

“These athletes are innovators and Dunkman is going to give them a global stage, real stakes, and a chance to build careers doing what they love,” O'Neal said. “We are transforming dunking from a one-night contest to the fastest growing professional sport off two feet.”

How viewers will watch

The events will air across several platforms, including TNT, TBS, truTV and HBO Max, along with some social media channels. Because if you are launching a new sport in 2026, it apparently helps to be available everywhere at once.

Dunkman also says it will use an “Olympic-level scoring system” with a panel of expert judges, which the league says is intended to set a modern standard for professional dunking.

What comes next

The league is betting that dunking can be more than a highlight reel appendage to basketball. O'Neal, who spent his own career turning the rim into a personal inconvenience for defenders, is now trying to build a full competition around the move.

Whether that becomes a lasting sport or simply the most Shaq thing imaginable remains to be seen. But at least now there is a bracket, a title, and half a million dollars to make the sky hook’s louder cousin feel properly official.