Aaron Gordon and Andre Drummond Reflect on the 2016 NBA Dunk Contest

Around this time of year, Andre Drummond is usually ramping up to start the upcoming NBA season. Instead, he recently spent an hour and a half trying to toss a cookie into a glass of milk from his pool.

That is just some of what the Cleveland Cavaliers big man has been doing to keep busy since his 2019–20 season was cut short in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Drummond has joined Orlando Magic forward Aaron Gordon in the sponsored “Got Milk?” #EpicMilkDunk challenge, where both stars got creative from their homes to make their best dunks—into milk.

"It was fun, it made my day,” Gordon says. “Having the chance to do something like this, [we’re] mutual friends, it was a fun experience. … I tried to keep the bar high.”

The milk dunk challenge is, of course, not the first dunk competition Gordon and Drummond have participated in—the duo previously competed in the 2016 All-Star Slam Dunk contest together alongside Zach LaVine and Will Barton. Gordon most recently competed in the 2020 Slam Dunk competition where he controversially finished second behind Derrick Jones Jr. after receiving a 9 out of 10 score from judge Dwyane Wade.

The 2016 competition, though, was one of the most exciting dunk contests in recent memory. Drummond exited after his second round of dunks while Gordon was outlasted in the sudden-death rounds by LaVine.

“My thing was to make it past the first round to enjoy the rest of the night, watch these guys do some awesome dunks,” Drummond said.

Gordon remembers Drummond’s “super crazy” dunk that night, where Hall of Famer Steve Nash used his soccer skills to lob up the basketball with his feet, amid the excitement of the event.

“I thought it was super entertaining, to put on a show with Dre, Will Barton, Zach LaVine,” Gordon said. “I thought we put on a really good show, super memorable dunk contest.”

Beyond slam dunks and milk dunks, Gordon and Drummond have been using their time this offseason to stay limber and mentally prepared for whenever they are called to play. Gordon has been off the court since August when he left the Orlando bubble after a hamstring injury, an experience he said was “challenging” while being away from family and friends and having few options to decompress.

Meanwhile, Drummond has not played since March as the Cavaliers were one of eight teams excluded from the bubble based on their record. The two-time All Star says he has spent his quarantine reflecting and called the time away from the court a “blessing in disguise” to reset his body.

As excited as Drummond and Gordon were to compete against each other in their milk dunks, there is nothing like hitting the court. When the league is able to return for the 2020-21 season, Drummond is excited to see what the players will accomplish.

“It’s going to be the best basketball there is,” Drummond said. “[Players have had] lots of time to recover. …that has never happened before. Basketball will be better [than ever].”