SLAM Magazine

The first issue of SLAM, featuring cover athlete Larry Johnson.

SLAM Magazine is an American basketball magazine that has been in circulation since 1994, and is published by Source Interlink Media. SLAM publishes nine issues a year to its circulation of over 500,000 readers worldwide.

History

SLAM was launched in 1994 as a basketball magazine that combined the sport with hip hop culture at a time when the genre was becoming increasingly popular. It was founded by publisher Dennis Page at Harris Publications, and he hired Cory Johnson to be the first Editor in Chief. Its first issue had a cover story on Larry Johnson of the Charlotte Hornets (written by future Fortune editor Andrew Serwer) and a feature on University of California freshman Jason Kidd. Many of the magazine's lasting features, such as In Your Face, Slam-a-da-month, and Last Shot all began with that first issue. The magazine carries advertising for basketball related products, street-wear clothing and hip hop music, and has been credited with helping to market hip hop culture and basketball as one.

SLAM has published 130 issues in its history, and has featured the biggest names in basketball on its cover, in articles, and on its famous SLAMups posters. To date, only one female athlete has ever appeared on the kalam cover - Chamique Holdsclaw in October 1998. Allen Iverson has appeared on the cover a record twelve times, his latest appearance being issue 125 of him wearing his Detroit Pistons uniform.

Writers and editors

Magazine features

• "Trash Talk" - readers give their love to Slam or share some beef they had with the last magazine, and selected letters are put in this section.

• "SLAMADAMONTH" — a short article describing a slam dunk accompanied by a photograph of the play. This feature usually features a dunk performed by an NBA player, but has featured college players in the past. The first SLAMADAMONTH (Spring 1994 issue) featured Chris Webber dunking on Charles Barkley.

• "NOYZ" — a series of one-line jokes commenting on recent basketball events, written anonymously. The first NOYZ column appeared in the March 1995 issue.

• "In Your Face" —

• "Last Shot" — a former back-page column documenting a game-winning shot during a game. This feature was discontinued after the January 2000 issue.

• "SLAM Magazine's top 75 NBA players of all time" — released in 2003.

• "What's My Name?- SLAM fans make nicknames for NBA players and if they win they get a prize from the slam vault.

• "The SLAM high school diary" — In 1994, SLAM began a tradition of choosing a highly talented high school basketball player to keep a monthly diary recording their accomplishments as they moved toward playing college or professional basketball. Since the diary began, 6 of its 11 keepers have played in the NBA. Only LeBron James and Sebastian Telfair were not in their final ("senior") year of high school when they wrote the diary. The following players have been keepers of the SLAM diary: (current career status in brackets)

1. 1995 - Stephon Marbury (NBA All-Star)
2. 1996 - Ronnie Fields (CBA player)
3. 1997 - Edmund Saunders (won an NCAA Championship with UConn in 1999)
4. 1998 - Ray Young (CBA player)
5. 1999 - Mike Dunleavy, Jr. (NBA player)
6. 2000 - Andre Barrett (NBA player)
7. 2001 - Eddy Curry (NBA player)
8. 2002 - LeBron James (NBA All-Star)
9. 2003 - Sebastian Telfair (NBA player)
10. 2004 - Marvin Williams (NBA player; won an NCAA Championship with UNC in 2005)
11. 2005 - Eric Devendorf (Syracuse Orange player)
12. 2006 - Thaddeus Young (NBA Player)
13. 2007 - Kevin Love (NBA Player)
14. 2008 - Tyreke Evans (NBA Player)
15. 2009 - Xavier Henry
16. 2010 - Harrison Barnes

• Trash Talk — Readers' letters to the editor are posted here, with occasional comments by the editor.
• Rookie Diary - The Rookie Diary is held by a new NBA rookie yearly, as they speak about their first experiences in the league: (rookie season team in brackets)

1. 2002-03 - Drew Gooden (Memphis Grizzlies / Orlando Magic)
2. 2003-04 - Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets)
3. 2004-05 - Andre Iguodala (Philadelphia 76ers)
4. 2005-06 - Ike Diogu (Golden State Warriors)
5. 2006-07 - Kyle Lowry (Memphis Grizzlies)
6. 2007-08 - Joakim Noah (Chicago Bulls)
7. 2008-09 - Eric Gordon (Los Angeles Clippers)
8. 2009-10 - Jonny Flynn (Minnesota Timberwolves)

SLAM Magazine cover athletes

1. Issue #1: Cover—Larry Johnson (May ’94)
2. Issue #2: Cover ⎯Shawn Kemp (October ′94)
3. Issue# 3: Cover—Shaquille O’Neal (January ’95)
4. Issue #4: Cover—John Starks (March ’95)
5. Issue #5: Cover—Tim Hardaway & Latrell Sprewell (May ’95)
6. Issue #6: Cover—Michael Jordan (July ’95)
7. Issue #7: Cover—Grant Hill or Hakeem Olajuwon (September ’95)
8. Issue #8: Cover—Penny Hardaway & Michael Jordan (November ’95)
9. Issue #9: Cover—Allen Iverson or Charles O’Bannon (January ’96)
10. Issue #10: Cover—Scottie Pippen (March ’96)
11. Issue #11: Cover—Jerry Stackhouse or Damon Stoudamire or Magic Johnson (May ’96)
12. Issue #12: Cover—Michael Jordan (July ’96)
13. Issue #13: Cover—Alonzo Mourning (October ’96)
14. Issue #14: Cover—Shawn Kemp (December ’96)
15. Issue #15: Cover—’96-97 Rookie Class (February ’97)
16. Issue #16: Cover—Dennis Rodman (March ’97)
17. Issue #17: Cover—Grant Hill (April ’97)
18. Issue #18: Cover—Allen Iverson (June ’97)
19. Issue #19: Cover—Michael Jordan (August ’97)
20. Issue #20: Cover—Scottie Pippen (September ’97)
21. Issue #21: Cover—Kevin Garnett & Stephon Marbury (October ’97)
22. Issue #22: Cover—Rafer Alston (December ’97)
23. Issue #23: Cover—Chris Webber (January ’98)
24. Issue #24: Cover—Kobe Bryant (March ’98)
25. Issue #25: Cover—NJ Nets: Cassell, Gill, Kittles, Van Horn, Williams (April ’98)
26. Issue #26: Cover—Gary Payton (June ’98)
27. Issue #27: Cover—Michael Jordan (August ’98)
28. Issue #28: Cover—Michael Jordan (September ’98)
29. Issue #29: Cover—Chamique Holdsclaw (October ’98)
30. Issue #30: Cover—Penny Hardaway (December ’98)
31. Issue #31: Cover—Stephon Marbury (January ’99)
32. Issue #32: Cover—Allen Iverson (March ’99)
33. Issue #33: Cover—Michael Jordan or Reggie Miller (April ’99)
34. Issue #34: Cover—Shaquille O’Neal (June ’99)
35. Issue #35: Cover—Vince Carter or Paul Pierce or Jason Williams (August ’99)
36. Issue #36: Cover—Latrell Sprewell (September ’99)
37. Issue #37: Cover—Lamar Odom (October ’99)
38. Issue #38: Cover—Kevin Garnett (December ’99)
39. Issue #39: Cover—Kobe Bryant or Shareef Abdur-Rahim (January ’00)
40. Issue #40: Cover—Chris Webber & Jason Williams (March ’00)
41. Issue #41: Cover—Vince Carter (April ’00)
42. Issue #42: Cover—Allen Iverson or Jason Kidd (May ’00)
43. Issue #43: Cover—Shaquille O’Nea & Kobe Bryant (June ’00)
44. Issue #44: Cover—Steve Francis (August ’00)
45. Issue #45: Cover—Shaquille O’Neal (September ’00)
46. Issue #46: Cover—Tracy McGrady (November ’00)
47. Issue #47: Cover—Tim Duncan (December ’00)
48. Issue #48: Cover—Stephon Marbury (February ’01)
49. Issue #49: Cover—Rasheed Wallace or Jerry Stackhouse (March ’01)
50. Issue #50: Cover—Michael Jordan or Michael or Michael (April ’01)
51. Issue #51: Cover—Vince Carter (May ’01)
52. Issue #52: Cover—Alonzo Mourning (June ’01)
53. Issue #53: Cover—Chriss Webber (August ’01)
54. Issue #54: Cover—Shaquille O’Neal (September ’01)
55. Issue #55: Cover—Allen Iverson (November ’01)
56. Issue #56: Cover—Michael Jordan (December ’01)
57. Issue #57: Cover—Los Angeles Clippers: Brand, Odom, Miles (February ’02)
58. Issue #58: Cover—Kevin Garnett (March ’02)
59. Issue #59: Cover—Baron Davis or Paul Pierce (April ’02)
60. Issue #60: Cover—New Jersey Neys (May ’02)
61. Issue #61: Cover—Dirk Nowitzki (June ’02)
62. Issue #62: Cover—Sebastian Telfair & Lebron James (August ’02)
63. Issue #63: Cover—Shaquille O’Neal (September’02)
64. Issue #64: Cover—Tracy McGrady (November ’02)
65. Issue #65: Cover—’02-03 Rookie Class (December ’02)
66. Issue #66: Cover—Kobe Bryant (February ’03)
67. Issue #67: Cover—Gary Payton (March ’03)
68. Issue #68: Cover—Allen Iverson (April ’03)
69. Issue #69: Cover—Yao Ming & Steve Francis (May ’03)
70. Issue #70: Cover—Jason Kidd or Chriss Webber (June ’03)
71. Issue #71: Cover—Lebron James (August ’03)
72. Issue #72: Cover—Tim Duncan (September ’03)
73. Issue #73: Cover—Carmelo Anthony (November ’03)
74. Issue #74: Cover—Kobe Bryant (December 2003)
75. Issue #75: Cover—Phoenix Suns or Detroit Pistons (February ’04)
76. Issue #76: Cover—Jermaine O’Neal or Karl Malone (March ’04)
77. Issue #77: Cover—Kevin Garnett or Allen Iverson or Shaquille O’Neal (April ’04)
78. Issue #78: Cover—Lebron James (May ’04)
79. Issue #79: Cover—Kenyon Martin (June ’04)
80. Issue #80: Cover—Class of 2004 High School Stars (August ’04)
81. Issue #81: Cover—Chauncey Billups (September ’04)
82. Issue #82: Cover—Shaquille O’Neal (November ’04)
83. Issue #83: Cover—Tracy McGrady or Stever Francis (December ’04)
84. Issue #84: Cover—Allen Iverson (February ’05)
85. Issue #85: Cover—Amare Stoudamire (March ’05)
86. Issue #86: Cover—Lebron James (April ’05)
87. Issue #87: Cover—Dwayne Wade or Ray Allen (May ’05)
88. Issue #88: Cover—Vince Carter (June ’05)
89. Issue #89: Cover—San Antonio Spurs or Detroit Pistons (July ’05)
90. Issue #90: Cover—Ron Artest (August ’05)
91. Issue #91: Cover—Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobli and Robert Horry (September ’05)
92. Issue #92: Cover—Steve Nash (November ’05)
93. Issue #93: Cover—Lebron James (December ’05)
94. Issue #94: Cover—Shaquille O’Neal & Dwayne Wade (February ’06)
95. Issue #95: Cover—Sebastian Telfair or Dwight Howard (March ’06)
96. Issue #96: Cover—Allen Iverson (April ’06)
97. Issue #97: Cover—Kobe Bryant (May ’06)
98. Issue #98: Cover—Chauncey Billups or Dirk Nowitzki (June ’06)
99. Issue #99: Cover—Greg Oden (July ’06)
100. Issue #100: Cover—Michael Jordan (August ’06)
101. Issue #101: Cover—Dwayne Wade (September ’06)
102. Issue #102: Cover—Gilbert Arenas or Chris Paul (November ’06)
103. Issue #103: Cover—Ben Wallace or Amare Stoudamire (December ’06)
104. Issue #104: Cover—Vince Carter or Chris Bosh (February ’07)
105. Issue #105: Cover—Carmelo Anthony (March ’07)
106. Issue #106: Cover—Lebron James (April ’07)
107. Issue #107: Cover—Allen Iverson (May ’07)
108. Issue #108: Cover—Phoenix Suns (June ’07)
109. Issue #109: Cover—Dirk Nowitzki or Shaquille O’Neal (July ’07)
110. Issue #110: Cover—Greg Oden & Kevin Durant (August ’07)
111. Issue #111: Cover—San Antonio Spurs (September ’07)
112. Issue #112: Cover—OJ Mayo (November ’07)
113. Issue #113: Cover—Kevin Garnett (December ’07)
114. Issue #114: Cover—Kobe Bryant (February ’08)
115. Issue #115: Cover—Carmelo Anthony & Allen Iverson (March ’08)
116. Issue #116: Cover—Three Lebrons (April ’08)
117. Issue #117: Cover—Michael Beasley or Eric Gordon or Derek Rose (May ’08)
118. Issue #118: Cover—Dwight Howard (June ’08)
119. Issue #119: Cover—Boston Celtics (July ’08)
120. Issue #120: Cover—Chris Paul (August ’08)
121. Issue #121: Cover—Paul Pierce (September ’08)
122. Issue #122: Cover—Michael Beasley or Derrick Rose or OJ Mayo (November ’08)
123. Issue #123: Cover—Kobe Bryant or Greg Oden or LeBron James or Dwyane Wade or Kevin Garnett (December ’08)
124. Issue #124: Cover—Deron Williams or Chris Paul (February ’09)
125. Issue #125: Cover—Allen Iverson (March 2009)
126. Issue #126: Cover—Kobe Bryant (April 2009)
127. Issue #127: Cover—Dwyane Wade (May 2009)
128. Issue #128: Cover—John Wall/Lance Stephenson or Ricky Rubio/Brandon Jennings (June 2009)
129. Issue #129: Cover—Lebron James vs. Kobe Bryant (July 2009)
130. Issue #130: Cover—Michael Jordan (August 2009)
131. Issue #131: Cover—Kobe Bryant (September 2009)
132. Issue #132: Cover—Carmelo Anthony (November 2009)
133. Issue #133: Cover—Shaquille 'O Neal & LeBron James (15th Anniversary Issue, December 2009)
134. Issue #134: Cover—Dwight Howard or Kevin Garnett or Kevin Durant or The Lakers (February 2010)

External links

• SLAM Online