AT&T SLAM DUNK

February 14, 2026

Carter Bryant

Press Conference

Q. If you could do it differently, what would you have done?

CARTER BRYANT: Nothing. I put the dunk down. I think if I put that dunk down, I win it. That's probably the dunk I did the most out of all the dunks I did today in my life. I've been doing that dunk since I was 14 years old. Just the ball didn't roll my way tonight. No, but it happens. It's a part of life.

Q. Be back next year for it?

CARTER BRYANT: Hopefully. I've got to avenge myself, so hopefully if I get the opportunity, I would love to.

Q. What did you learn from the entire experience?

CARTER BRYANT: The process of it all. No matter if it's a game, no matter if it's a Dunk Contest, no matter if it's a Rising Stars game, your process has to be the same. It's all the same mentality, it's all the same approach. Just being able to finish the job.

Losing sucks. I hate losing. That's the thing I hate the most on earth. Probably beat myself up a little bit about it for probably a few minutes, but after that I've got to let it go. I've got to get it back on the back end.

Q. Does the losing hurt even more because, like you said, it was yours for the taking there on that last one, that you've done before?

CARTER BRYANT: No, not even. I think it's just losing. Just losing in general, no matter what it is. I could care less if it was an Uno game, I could care less if it was running lines, I could care les if it's a shooting competition. I feel like losing is something that burns. I just hate it. That's just something you don't want to feel.

But I'm going to get it back. I'm for sure going to get it back one way or another.

Q. Is it tougher because it looked like you were the best dunker out there?

CARTER BRYANT: Absolutely. No, I mean, ironically enough, the downfall of the Dunk Contest was everything everybody has been joking about this year, so there's a little bit of truth in everything.

But I mean, Keshad did a great job. That's an Arizona guy. If anybody else can take it home, got my guy there. Jase, Jaxson, they both did a great job. But that's my brother. That's an Arizona connection, so I'm happy for him. He did a hell of a job executing his dunks and he stuck to his plan.

Yeah, going back to that feeling of losing, you hate losing no matter what it is. I wish I could have brought it back, but oh, well.

Q. Only needing a 47.5, did you change your strategy at all or did you have a set pattern of dunks that you were going to do no matter what?

CARTER BRYANT: Yeah. That last one I was either going to go there or I was going to go reverse 360 in between. If I got it down, I knew I was going to win. Just a matter of getting it down. Sometimes it don't happen.