Mac McClung’s breakout performance at the NBA Slam Dunk Contest is generating a business boost for the Philadelphia 76ers’ G League team: the Delaware Blue Coats.
Tickets sales are up five times the daily average since McClung won Saturday’s night’s contest, according to Blue Coats spokesman Alex Yoh.
Anticipation is building for tonight’s home game vs. the Motor City Cruise at Chase Fieldhouse in Wilmington, Delaware. The arena seats 2,500 fans for home games. Ticket prices for tonight’s game range from $11 to $64.
Meanwhile, the Blue Coats and 76ers have been deluged with interview requests for the 24-year-old McClung from outlets ranging from ESPN to CNN. The fresh-faced point guard was the first G League player to participate in, much less win, the Slam Dunk Contest.
“My biggest motto is to act in love — and the world will assist you,” McClung told ESPN’s “SportsCenter” in an interview Tuesday. “So whatever you want to do, you can do it.”
The former Georgetown Hoya and Texas Tech Red Raider was already a YouTube sensation in high school due to his highlight reels.
No less than TNT’s Shaquille O’Neal said McClung “saved” the dunk contest. His bravura performance gave the struggling event a much-needed shot in the arm.
- The NBA says Saturday’s Slam-Dunk contest was the most-viewed ever. His performance has racked up more than 520 million video views, including a half billion in the first 12 hours alone.
- McClung is now up to 1.1 million followers on Instagram. He added 250,000 in the first 48 hours since winning the contest. He also signed a deal with Puma.
- He’s received hundreds of interview requests. His phone still has 1,000 unread text messages.
McClung won the Dunk contest wearing a 76ers, not a Blue Coats, jersey. He’s on a two-way deal with the NBA franchise, meaning the 76ers can call him up at any time. Given the attention he’s getting, that opportunity could be coming soon.
