INDIANAPOLIS — It's not unusual to run into a basketball legend in Indianapolis.
Darnell "Dr. Dunk" Hillman is an Indiana Pacers legend who loves people and basketball. Hillman sat down with 13 Sports director Dave Calabro to reflect on his NBA career and how he won the league's first ever dunk contest in 1977.
He was considered the underdog of the competition, going up against names such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
"Kareem brought the house down, he brought the house down," Hillman said. "He had all his fans there."
Hillman's reward for winning the NBA's first dunk contest was $1,500 but didn't get a trophy because of how new the dunk contest was at the time.
Years later, the Pacers honored Hillman with a trophy for winning the inaugural dunk contest.
Despite playing for six different teams, Hillman chose Indiana as his home because of how warm and friendly the fans were.
Watch Dave's full interview with Dr. Dunk in the player above.