6-foot-11 Howard is the super slam dunk king

The Orlando player scored perfect 50s from judges on his first two dunks.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Look, up in the sky, it’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s Dwight Howard — super slam dunk champion.

A red cape trailing behind him, Orlando’s man of steel made like Superman and won perhaps the best dunk contest, definitely the most creative, in NBA history to close a memorable All-Star Saturday.

Using a variety of props as well as teammate Jameer Nelson, Howard scored perfect 50s from judges on his first two dunks before the contest was turned over to fan voting for the first time in the final round.

Fans, too, picked the 6-foot-11 Howard, who dispelled an old dunking myth: Big men can fly high.

In any other year, Minnesota’s Gerald Green would have easily walked away with his second straight dunking crown, but he was upstaged by the amazingly athletic Howard.

Howard, Green, Toronto’s Jamario Moon and Memphis’ Rudy Gay all used tape, ladders, teammates and even a dessert to show their stuff.

Howard started things off with a see-through dunk. Standing on the baseline, he tossed the ball off the reverse side of the backboard, caught it with both hands, and after peering through the glass at the rim, dunked left-handed.

The crowd roared and a celebrity panel of judges including Magic Johnson, Karl Malone as well as Dominique Wilkins, Julius Erving and Darryl Dawkins — three of the game’s most famed dunkers — all gave him perfect 10s.

Not to be outdone, Green tried to blow the field away. Literally.

After Timberwolves teammate Rashad McCants climbed up and placed a cupcake with a single candle in it on the back of the rim, Green soared in and puffed out the flame before throwing down a nasty left-hander.

In the second round, McCants sat on the top step of the ladder and handed the ball off to a rising Green, who crushed another dunk.

That’s when Howard stripped off his blue Magic jersey to reveal an “S” on his chest. He then donned the cape, and after a running start from near mid-court, took off just inside the free-throw line and fired down the ball.

In the final round, Green performed two acrobatic dunks, one in only green socks after removing his sneakers. But neither of those could top Howard’s last two efforts.

Earlier, Jason Kapono showed nobody’s close to him from long distance.

The NBA’s best 3-point shooter this season, the Toronto forward with the silky touch won his second straight 3-point Shootout, tying a 22-year-old record with a final round of 25. Cleveland’s Daniel Gibson, who made 11 3-pointers in Friday night’s rookie challenge finished second. He scored 17 points in the final round, finishing three points ahead of Dallas’ Dirk Nowitzki, who replaced the injured Bryant.