Previewing the 2025 GHSA Slam Dunk Participants

By: Reginald Graham, Will Fields, and Pilar Rossi

Although we dont have an All-Star Weekend here in Georgia, we still have the events. From March 6-8, the GHSA will put on display the best dunkers and shooters the state has to offer in the 2025 Slam Dunk/3-Point Contest presented by BSN Sports at the Macon Coliseum.

This will be part one of athree-part series covering all the contestants in the events.

Each Slam Dunk participant has their own story, and we will highlight the unique paths theyve taken to get here.From experiences such asjustrecentlypicking up a basketballto using plyometrics to increase their flexibility,as well asmom making sure everyone in the family votes for you. Everyone has their own.Letstake a lookat what brought them here.

Oluremi Guerreroc/o 27 Druid Hills

2024 Season Stats8 PPG, 5 RPG, 2 APG, 1 SPG

A relative newcomerto the sport,Oluremi Guerrero saw this years contest as a good opportunitytobring some notoriety to his name.Having only playedorganized basketball for a couple ofyears,Guerrero looks to seizeany opportunity to showcase his natural athletic ability.He initially played basketball for fun; however,once he noticed a sizeable jump in athleticism after hisseventh-grade track season, he realized that he was a cut above the rest. He recalls a time at the end of hiseighth-grade season where one practice,his legs felt a bit better than normal, and he went up for a dunk,and thats when he knew he had something special. This sophomore may have come to the world of organized basketball a bit later than his peers, but with his newfound athleticism and confidence, hes got high hopes of one day going to play for a DivisionIprogram. Guerrero isnt just an athlete;hes a student who excels in the classroom just as much as he does on the court. With his work ethic, athleticism, and classroom excellence, Im sure this will not be the last we hear of him.

Oluremi Guerrero Dunk Highlights

Jaylin Sweatc/o 26 Bradwell Institute

2024 Season Stats12.1 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 1.1 BPG

A junior at Bradwell Institute, Jaylin Sweat is gearing up for his first-everSlamDunkContest. The 6 '6, 190-pound big man flushed his first dunk at age 15 and has been working on his explosiveness ever since, using plyometric workouts to take hisathleticismto the next level.

I started trying different things,Sweat said. I windmilled in a game, that was crazy for me because I thought I was going toget hung at first, but I noticed how high I got.The Georgia-native said that when he got his first Eastbay dunk,a between-the-legs-dunk,he knew the ploys were paying off, and now,during games, his teammates joke with him and say, "Man, you need to go Eastbay!"

Off the court, the 17-year-old likes tohang outand watch movies. When it comes to the classroom, his favorite subject isIntro to Business,but he also enjoys math from time to time.Sweatshared that hes all about communication, viewing it as a valuable skill both on and off the court.

While Sweat kept his tactics for the contest under wraps, he revealed his signature style when attacking the rimif hes coming from the left, we can expect a reverse, but from the right, it's a clean windmill. He explained that at first, his teammate was going to enter the contest, but after some encouragement, he took over and racked up votes on social media, with his friends and family reposting on their respective platforms. While Sweat wants his fellow contestantstoball out and make every dunk, hes confident in his ability and has his eyes set on winning it all.

Jaylin Sweat Dunk Highlights

Sam Mobbs c/o 26 - Trion

2024 Season Stats22.3 PPG, 6.1 RPG, 2.6 BPG

Class A Division II Region 7 Player of the Year

I was looking at the other videos, and the dunks that I was doing werelooking better than the others,Mobbs saidafter seeing the competition.Hebelieved that nothing could stop him from making the finals. Its safe to say that Mobbsconfidence levelmust be at an all-time high.

Although he felt his dunks were better, he still had to go through the process of receiving votes and earning a spot in the finals. Well, my mom has a lot of Facebook friends, and she posted it (voting video) on Facebook every day.

Now that hes here in the finals, the pressure is starting to mount, and interestingly, he says that the order of the participants in the event may help determine which dunks he will perform. However, hes keeping his dunkrepertoire to himself, saying his first dunk will probably be a lay-up.

Sams favorite subject at Trion is math,and when hes home, hespends his free time playing NBA 2K25or hanging with friends.He spent all summer training for this moment,even though he had no idea he would be competing in this contest then.At the end of the day, hesjust going to go out there and hope for the best.

Quick Highlight Vid. pic.twitter.com/fcPHYk4o5X Sam Mobbs (@SamMobbs3b) January 9, 2025