The man who calls himself Air Canada soared to new heights on Saturday.
Halifax Rainmen star Eric Crookshank thrilled the hometown crowd of 3,216 at the Metro Centre by winning the slam-dunk competition as part of the Premier Basketball League’s inaugural all-star weekend.
Crookshank’s best dunk was a 50-pointer in the second round that saw him don a Superman outfit, complete with tights, cape and underwear, in a routine inspired by former NBA slam-dunk champion Dwight Howard.
Three fans clad completely in blue and sporting No. 20 Rainmen jerseys circled the six-foot-eight Californian at centre court as he got changed, then sat in chairs at the no-charge line and waited for Crookshank to leap over them for a soaring two-handed jam.
“I went on Youtube and saw Dwight Howard do it — but he only had the top and the cape,” Crookshank said afterward.
“I decided to go the whole nine yards, put on the undies and the whole bit. I got the crowd into it … We had a good time.”
Rainmen point guard Gary Ervin was runner-up. Keith Friel of the Rochester RazorSharks won the three-point contest, edging out Rainmen star Desmond Ferguson in the final.
