February is always a very crowded month for sports, especially this year with the Winter Olympics. One of the most popular events is NBA’s All-Star weekend which is this weekend, and one of the most-watched events during it is the slam dunk contest. Because of this, the NBA is teaming up with Cartoon Network and Teen Titans Go! for a special titled The Cartoon Network Special Edition: NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Contest Presented by Nike. The event description reads as followed:
The Cartoon Network Special Edition: NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Contest Presented by Nike offers a comical mashup of basketball and Super Heroes as the Teen Titans host this special airing of the slam dunk contest from Inside the NBA headquarters. Robin, Raven, Beast Boy, Cyborg and Starfire will share colorful commentary, “professional” insights, and outlandish “Redraw Replays” that enhance the slam dunks with wildly animated overlays, crazy sound effects and surprise appearances by some of the world’s biggest cartoon stars from Warner Bros. Animation and Cartoon Network Studios.
Accompanying the announcement is a sizzle reel trailer narrated by Scott Menville’s Robin hyping up the event. In the footage we see the Teen Titans composed of Robin, Cyborg, Beast Boy, Raven, and Starfire as the commentators for the contest, replacing the usual TNT crew of Shaquille O'Neal, Ernie Johnson Jr., Kenny Smith, and Charles Barkley. However, animated Barkley can be seen in the trailer along with footage of the actual dunk contest mixed in with basketball-themed scenes from shows like Adventure Time, Powerpuff Girls, Regular Show, and Looney Tunes. So expect many of your favorite Cartoon Network characters to at least cameo in the special. Also, it appears that Matthew Lillard’s Shaggy and Scooby-Doo will be hilariously acting as the sideline reporters for the event with our favorite mystery solving duo even sharing a bite to eat with Beast Boy who is taking the form of a dog himself.
However, arguably the most hilarious thing from the trailer, is that the Justice League is acting as the judges for the contest. Wonder Woman can be seen blowing a kiss towards the audience and Superman, who was voiced by Nicolas Cage in Teen Titans Go! to The Movies, winks at the camera. While it is unlikely Cage is returning for this special, it is very funny seeing his version of Superman again.
This is not the first time Teen Titans Go!, which just got renewed for an 8th Season on CN, has had basketball-themed events as just last year they starred in the direct-to-video movie Teen Titans Go! See Space Jam. While the slam dunk contest itself was last night, it will be really fun to see how our favorite teenage team of heroes tackles the event in their usual silly brand of comedy and this seems very similar to how Nickelodeon has been covering the NFL the last couple of years with its loads of colorful animations.
Cartoon Network Special Edition: NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Contest Presented by Nike premiered today and you can watch the full trailer for the event down below.