What was “Dolly Parton challenge” & how did NBA teams react to it? All you need to know

Back in 2020, the Dolly Parton challenge was absolutely dominating the internet. It all started one fateful day in January when the famous singer-songwriter took to Instagram with a series of photos captioned "Get you a woman who can do it all" along with four photos of her looking incredibly different.

The first was a photo of Parton dressed as a schoolteacher from one of her acting gigs. The photo was labeled LinkedIn, showing how individuals present themselves on the professional networking platform. The second was a picture of Parton in a Christmas sweater with the label 'Facebook' over it, showing how people present themselves on the social networking website.

Next was a black and white photo of Parton posing with her guitar in a pair of denim jeans with the label 'Instagram', showing how people portray themselves on the app. Last but certainly not least was a photo of Parton dressed in a full Playboy Bunny outfit with the label 'Tinder' on it, showing how promiscuous people are on the dating app.

Quickly, the images, and the challenge of showing how individuals portray themselves on social media, began to dominate social media platforms. Unsurprisingly, it didn't take long for the NBA and its fans to begin using the format for posts.

Above, you can see United States TV network hosts discussing the viral challenge.

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The NBA takes on the Dolly Parton challenge

It didn't take long before NBA teams and players were participating in the Dolly Parton Challenge. Tobias Harris and the Philadelphia 76ers made one of the best, with photos of Harris from throughout the years. His first photo labeled 'LinkedIn' showed him sitting in an office surrounded by plenty of college pennants.

The next one showed Harris and a teammate next to each other laughing with the label 'Facebook'. Things then pivoted to a photo of Harris decked out in plenty of jewelry while wearing sunglasses in front of his locker labeled 'Instagram'. Last but certainly not least, Harris shared a photo of himself shirtless after a workout with the label 'Tinder'.

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The Boston Celtics also got in on the action, using Marcus Smart for their Dolly Parton Challenge. Their photos showed Smart on Draft Day for his 'LinkedIn' picture, and a photo of him smiling at a practice for his 'Facebook' labeled picture. In his 'Instagram' labeled picture, Smart can be seen diving for the ball in elaborate fashion.

Last but certainly not least was Smart's 'Tinder' picture, which showed him shirtless in a Versace robe with necklaces and sunglasses on.

Of course, not every example of the Dolly Parton challenge that the NBA did was as wholesome. The Houston Rockets decided to take the Dolly Parton Challenge as an opportunity to take shots at the Minnesota Timberwolves, who they had recently defeated.

Instead of showing a photo of Russell Westbrook, who played for the Rockets at the time, and labeled it as Tinder, they posted a picture of Westbrook trolling.

Do you have a favorite NBA edition of the Dolly Parton challenge? Give us your thoughts in the comments section below!

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