Review: 43010 Nike Slam Dunk from LEGO® Nike

The Nike x LEGO® lineup has been all about sneakers so far, but 43010 Nike Slam Dunk switches things up with a high-flying twist: instead of building the Dunk you wear, you’re building the dunk you score.

Does the set lives up to its name or did The LEGO Group drop the ball on this one? Let's lace up and find out...

Products in this article were gifted by The LEGO Group; the author's opinions are their own.
This article contains affiliate links to LEGO.com; we may get a small commission if you purchase.

43010 Nike Slam Dunk

• Release date: 1 September 2025
• Pieces: 809

Price:  

• US$ 69.99 on LEGO.com US
• CA$ 89.99 on LEGO.com Canada
• GB£ 59.99 on LEGO.com UK
• AU$ 109.99 on LEGO.com Australia
• NZ$ 129.99 on LEGO.com New Zealand
• DE€ 69,99 on LEGO.com Deutschland
• NL€ 69,99 on LEGO.com Nederland
• FR€ 69,99 on LEGO.com France
• PLN 299.99 on LEGO.com Polska
• NOK 949,90 on LEGO.com Norge
• DKK 599.95 on LEGO.com Danmark

Other countries click here

 

Recolours

A wonderful 18 elements have been recoloured for 43010 Nike Slam Dunk; impressive for a set of this size. It's an eclectic mix of parts with something for everyone to appreciate, from recoloured ball joints to brackets and new curvy elements. 

First, the elements new to dark blue:

• 2x Bracket 1 x 1 - 1 x 2 (6572731 | 79389)
• 2x Technic Rotation Joint Ball Loop with Two Perpendicular Pins with Friction (6574873 | 47455)
• 3x Technic Brick 1 x 2 [2 Pin Holes] (6574771 | 32000)
• 4x Brick Round Corner, Curved 2 x 2 x 2/3 Quarter Circle (6572736 | 5852)
• 2x Technic Brick Special 2 x 2 with Pin Hole, Rotation Joint Ball Half [Vertical Side] (6574857 | 48171, 48454, 5333)

Next, some yellowish green parts: 

• 2x Tile 2 x 3  (6572933 | 26603)
• 2x Slope Curved 2 x 2 with Stud Notch Right  (6572945 | 5093)
• 2x Slope Curved 2 x 2 with Stud Notch Left (6572934 | 5095)
• 2x Plate 2 x 4  (6572930 | 3020)

The list continues with 5 new Reddish Brown pieces:

• 1x Technic Plate 2 x 4 [3 Holes] (6574769 | 3709)
• 2x Slope Curved 3 x 1 x 2/3 (6572894 | 7302)
• 1x Slope Curved 2 x 2 with Stud Notches (6574770 | 66956)
• 2x Technic Brick Special 2 x 2 with Ball Socket Wide and Axle Hole, No Arm Holes (6572892 | 67696)
• 2x Technic Brick Modified 2 x 2 with Ball and Axle Hole, with 6 Holes in Ball (6572893 | 57909b)

Finishing off with a few random recoloured bits and bobs:

• 2x Technic Panel Dome 5 x 5 with Pin Holes in Orange (6564706 | 4412)
• 4x Brick Round Corner 2 x 2 x 1 in Black (6572775 | 5924)
• 2x Technic Brick 1 x 3 [3 Pin Holes] in Black (6572774 | 5565)
• 4x Technic Brick 1 x 1 with Axle Hole in Blue (6572891 | 73230)

After reading Tom Loftus' recent article breaking down the new 2x2 round corner (shown in black above), it is probably one of my most coveted recent parts but from this selection, I'm also keen to play around with the orange domes, and I know those dark blue brackets will come in very handy!

New decorations

Nike Slam Dunk features 1 printed element and 4 sticker sheets:

• 1x Panel 1 x 6 x 5 with print in Trans-Clear (6552495)

Customization is the main interactive element of the set and as such, the set includes a large number of stickers with which to personalize your model. I've been quite enjoying the graphic design on these Nike sticker sheets, as they give us plenty of logos with which to sponsor our MOCs! 

Although transparent stickers offer more flexibility for use in MOCs—the honeycomb pattern and stripes in this set could be fun to experiment with—they feel less suited to a display model like this, which relies so heavily on decals. Transparent stickers are notoriously tricky to apply neatly, often showing dust, fingerprints, or air bubbles if not handled with extreme care, which makes their inclusion here a little disappointing.

Easter eggs

The sticker sheets include a few fun references to both the Nike and LEGO brands. 

• The various prominent 32 numberings relate to the establishment of the LEGO company in 1932.
• Similarly, the 72 refers to the release of the first Nike branded shoes in 1972. 
• The various fouls and player scores make up the set number
• The 0937 is how you spell LEGO upside down on your calculator!

I couldn't find a satisfying answer to what the central 93, 4 and 53 on the scoreboard might refer to, however. Any ideas?

Rare elements

The following 9 elements appear in 3 sets or fewer:

• 2 x Slope Curved 3 x 1 x 2/3 in Bright Blue/ Blue (6568267 | 7302) in 1 set
• 2 x Tile 2 x 4 with Groove in Spring Yellowish Green/ Yellowish Green (6405559 |  87079) in 3 sets
• 1 x Bar, Ring 7L Diameter, with 2 Axle Connectors in Bright Orange/ Orange (6444697 | 79851) in 1 set
• 6 x Tile 4 x 4 in Earth Blue/ Dark Blue (6549659 | 1751) in 2 sets
• 2 x Tile 2 x 3 in Dark Azure (6535516 | 26603) in 2 sets
• 1 x Tile Round 3 x 3 in Dark Azure (6529284 | 67095) in 1 set
• 1 x Technic Brick 1 x 2 with Hole and Dual Beam Extensions in Reddish Brown (6534905 | 49132, 85943) in 2 sets
• 1 x Tile Round 3 x 3 in Medium Lilac/ Dark Purple (6379863 | 67095) in 2 sets
• 4 x Tile Round 1 x 1 in Nougat (6343472 | 35381) in 3 sets

Build experience

The build is light on memorable building techniques; this use of reflected triangles is probably the most interesting. 

The basketball player's legs and waist are built in a fixed position with LEGO Technic elements and attached firmly to the backdrop. The arms make use of ball joints to allow some degree of posing of the upper body.

Finished model

The finished model depicts a basketball player mid-dunk. The stylized design of the figure adds a playful touch that mostly works well in LEGO form. You can see from the official image at the end of the article that the finished model would benefit greatly from stickers, had I applied them.

Unlike the 2 other Nike sets, there are no play features or interactive elements to the set; apart from the few posing options offered by the joints in the neck and arms, it's a static display piece. Having the option to remove the player from the base to play with, or display as an action figure, seems like a missed opportunity.

The instructions include steps to build the player in 3 different ways. Above are the 3 customization options that can be built with the parts in the set.

Here is an idea of the number of parts leftover from building one of the variants, which includes lots of extra pieces to stick those stickers onto!

Conclusion

Rather than living up to its name, 43010 Nike Slam Dunk seems more airball, leaving me somewhat underwhelmed. The basketball player's dynamic pose is generally well executed, but ultimately it’s still a static display piece. The set would have benefitted hugely from some of the clever play features and interactive elements that we've seen from other sets in the Nike x LEGO collection.

 While I appreciate the attempt at providing a personalization option, as the player is wearing a generic outfit rather than colours associated with a particular basketball team, this inclusion feels a little meaningless. I may not be the target audience for this set, but including a couple of alternative skin tones would have helped me feel a more personal connection to the model – although I understand that this could potentially increase the piece count and therefore, price – considerably.

That said, in terms of parts, the set offers good value: 809 pieces for US$69.99/ £59.99/ 69.99€/ AU$109.99 is a great deal – better than some non-licensed sets – and the inclusion of 18 recolours is impressive for its size. The build experience may not be particularly memorable, but parts enthusiasts will likely find at least a few things to appreciate here. 

View Nike Slam Dunk on LEGO.com

 

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