Indiana Pacers guard Johnny Furphy made a name for himself in Summer League with an outrageous dunk.
The 20-year-old, who was selected in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft, pulled off a highlight reel play against the Chicago Bulls.
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In the second quarter, Furphy went behind the back against Matas Buzelis and he charged to the rim, before throwing down a one-handed slam on Noa Essengue.
The spectacular dunk put Chicago’s first-round pick on a poster, and thanks to social media, it’s one that’s already been seen around the world.
Essengue’s face was caught on camera, and the moment far from flattered him.
The rookie was seen with his arms flailing and mouth wide open, as Furphy jammed the ball through the hoop.
Naturally, the photo was soon shared far and wide online, and made its way onto ESPN’s SportsCenter.
“That’s the worst poster I’ve seen in my life… is that real?” the anchors asked, failing to hold back their laughter together.
“That was rough.”
As they tried to move on and throw to highlights of the WNBA game between the Chicago Sky and Minnesota Lynx, host Nicole Briscoe simply couldn’t keep it together.
“This is hard to do right now, because I just want to laugh,” she added, putting her head onto the desk.
NBA fans shared similar responses to the dunk, and suggested it’s a moment that Essengue will be unable to forget for a long time.
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“Might not ever make it back from that poster…” one fan wrote on X.
“Idc if bro goes on to win five rings, bro will never recover from this pic,” another said.
“Number 24 could win six championships, and this pic would still be the defining moment of his life,” a third suggested.
“Snatched his soul,” a fourth simply concluded.
Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton, who led Indiana to the NBA Finals before suffering a Game 7 Achilles rupture that is expected to sideline him for the entirety of the 2025-26 season, also reacted to Furphy’s dunk.
“Johnny MF Furphy sheeeeeesh,” he wrote.
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Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark, meanwhile, re-shared the embarrassing Essengue shot on her Instagram story.
While Furphy provided the highlight moment of the Summer League so far, it was the Bulls that picked up the win on Monday night.
Buzelis was the leading scorer for the Bulls with 28 points and five rebounds in a 114-105 victory.
Essengue also had a solid showing and finished with 21 points.
He will be remembered, however, for being on the receiving end of Furphy’s posterizing dunk that sent social media — and SportsCenter — into meltdown.
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