Shaquille OโNealโs professional dunk league game show โDunkmanโ will swish into a second season in 2027. The project hails from Authentic Brands Group and TNT Sports, which is a co-creator and equity partner in OโNealโs league.
โThe debut of โDunkmanโ proved what I already knew: these athletes are superstars, and dunking is a professional sport,โ OโNeal said in a statement. โNext year weโre going bigger. More cities, more countries, team battles and a junior division for the next generation. Weโre building the future of the sport.โ
Running from the end of the NBA season through the start of NFL and College Football season,ย dunkers will compete around the world to earn their place in the professional league. This year, there will also be team competitions and a junior division for athletes 15-and-under. Dunkers must qualify in a series of open-competition events in front of a panel of professional judges before progressing to the big leagues.ย
Last yearโs inaugural season saw success with nearly 6 total viewers on TNT Sports, as well as 1.5 billion video impressions on social media. Twenty-four dunkers competed across four live events before โโCam Hazzard was crowned the Dunkman World Champion and claimed the $500,000 grand prize.ย
โSeason 1 of โDunkmanโ established dunking as a professional sport,โ president of Authentic Studios Colin Smeeton said. โSeason 2 and beyond will continue to build a global league and platform through team competitions, a junior division and a global qualifier series that puts โDunkmanโ in new markets year-round. We are in the early stages of what this property will become.โ
โDunkmanโ and the league, according to a statement, are โdesigned to elevate the sport of dunking with structure, storytelling, stakes and world-class competition.โ
OโNeil, 15-time NBA All-Star-turner-rapper, is โDunkmanโโs founder and commissioner. The show is presented by Authentic Brands and TNT Sports. TNT Sports is a co-creator and equity partner in the Dunkman League.ย
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