Two-time NBA Slam Dunk champion and 2006 Naismith Hall of Fame inductee Dominique Wilkins started off a conversation Tuesday afternoon by indicating that, “Everything’s Kool and the Gang.” We liked him already. Wilkins is a judge in this year’s Sprite Slam Dunk Contest at the NBA All-Star game, a competition that is taking place on Saturday with a fan voting element this time around. Wilkins took time to chat about the field, dunking in general, nicknames and his real first name, Jacques. He also worked in “Sprite” as much as possible, which no doubt made the sponsors happy. We hope you do enjoy.

RandBall: Gerald Green, the local guy; Dwight Howard, Orlando; Rudy Gay, Memphis; Jamario Moon, Toronto: Break down this year’s field for me, if you would.
Dominique Wilkins: I think it’s a good field … and until someone dethrones Gerald, he’s the champion … I think it’s a bunch of good young guys. And to have the fans involved in the Sprite Slam Dunk competition, going on NBA.com and texting their vote, I think it will be a lot of fun. Hopefully the fans cast a fair vote, and everyone has an honest chance to win.

RB: How has dunking evolved over the years?
DW: I think there’s not too much you can change. It’s a matter of taking what you’ve already seen and putting in new variations to make it more dramatic. If players take what they’ve seen in their whole careers, then they can be that much more creative.

RB: What do you think of all these dunk competitors putting videos on YouTube in an attempt to sway voters?
DW: I like it. It gets the fans to look at that particular guy and think, “Maybe we’ll vote for him because he did reach out to the fans for help.”

RB: Sprite is the official sponsor of the dunk competition. Is it scientific fact or just speculation that a lemon-lime beverage can help you dunk better?
DW: Hey, Sprite helped me dunk better. … I don’t know about the rest of the guys (laughing). Sprite has been involved for quite a while. To have them involved, if you look back on the history, I think the NBA and Sprite have done a great job of bringing it back to where it used to be.

RB: I know you’re a judge this year and you’re supposed to say great things about the dunk competition, but c’mon: Those 1980s duels between you and Michael Jordan. It’s hard to get much better than that, right?
DW: Yeah, I knew you would come up with that. That was one of the greatest competitions in history. That wasn’t just Michael and myself. It was a very electrifying weekend.

RB: That was 1988 in Chicago. You were robbed, no?
DW: Is that what you think? Well, I’m not going to argue with you on that one (laughing).

RB: You were born in Paris and your full name is Jacques Dominique Wilkins. Why lose the Jacques?
DW: Dominique sounds more professional. “Here comes Jacques Wilkins down the court.” Nah, that doesn’t work.

RB: You were originally drafted by the Utah Jazz, which is something I had forgotten. Have you ever thought about what it would have been like to play your career in Utah?
DW: It’s hard to say what would have happened … If I had gone to Utah, would Stockton and Malone have been there? It all depends on draft position. May have been, may not have been. Hard to say.

RB: The nickname Human Highlight Film: Does that put you on the spot to be dazzling even when you’re in civilian clothes?
DW: You know what, that name got me this far. A lot of people don’t it, but I’ve had it since 11th grade. Howard Garfinkel from Five Star basketball academy gave me that nickname. … As I got older, I decided it could make a little money for me.

RB: You’re in the prime of your career, but you’re also trapped on a basketball court that is surrounded by angry lions. The only way to make them go away is to score a perfect 50 on a dunk. What dunk to you perform?
DW: Windmill. It never fails.

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