Former Illini Terrence Shannon Jr. lands another explosive NBA preseason dunk

With the Minnesota Timberwolves set to face the Chicago Bulls in the NBA preseason on Wednesday, Illini fans had high hopes for a showdown between Ayo Dosunmu and Terrence Shannon Jr.

Unfortunately, the duel between the former stars from Illinois never took place.

Dosunmu, the Bulls’ fourth-year guard, missed game day because of shoulder soreness. And with Minnesota’s established starters playing a lot of minutes, Shannon — a rookie first-round pick — received limited minutes in the Timberwolves’ rotation.

But on Thursday against the Denver Nuggets, Shannon made up for the missed opportunity by landing his second stunning dunk of the preseason.

Late in the second quarter, Shannon caught a kick-out pass on the left wing, deflected the ball into the corner and found a runway. On one dribble, he was in the lane and — while Nuggets forward Vlatko Čančar came from an assist position to make a futile last-ditch attempt to contest the ball — he rose to the rim to finish with an emphatic left-handed jam.

Shannon finished the season with a well-rounded tally of nine points, six assists and five rebounds in a 132-126 loss to Denver.

When Minnesota begins the regular season next Tuesday, Shannon will get his first opportunity to log official NBA minutes. The Timberwolves face the LeBron James-led Los Angeles Lakers in the second game of a TNT doubleheader (9 p.m. CT) on the NBA’s opening night.

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