Dunk contest includes Aaron Gordon, not Zach LaVine

Aaron Gordon was the runner-up in last year's slam dunk contest and this time he will not be going against two-time defending champion Zach LaVine of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The NBA announced the participants Thursday and Gordon headlines the field for the event, which will be held Feb. 18 in New Orleans. He is returning after nearly knocking off LaVine, who said last week that he was not participating.

At last year's contest in Toronto, Gordon posted three straight perfect scores of 50 but wound up losing to LaVine. The third-year Orlando Magic forward lost the contest by three points in the second tiebreaker despite highlighting the event with several difficult dunks.

While LaVine is not returning to attempt to become the first player to win three straight years, Gordon will be joined by Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan, Phoenix Suns rookie Derrick Jones Jr. and Indiana Pacers forward Glenn Robinson III.

Jordan was named as a Western Conference reserve and leads the league in rebounding at 13.8 per game and field goal percentage (69.6) for the fifth straight season. The 6-foot-11 Jordan also leads the league with 150 dunks this season.

Jones is the first player to compete in the NBA's dunk contest and play in the D-League during the same season. He has split time between the Suns and the Northern Arizona Suns of the D-League and won a national dunk contest for high schoolers in 2015 before his lone season at UNLV.

Robinson rounds out the field and has started 24 games for the Pacers. The third-year swingman is averaging 6.3 points and 3.7 rebounds this season