The NBA Dunk Contest is on relevancy life support … but Julius Erving, the first-ever winner in the event, has a way to save it — telling TMZ Sports it’s time for the league’s biggest stars to brush up on their history.

We caught up with the Hall of Famer in NYC this week … and considering he has countless iconic slams to his name, we had to ask about the state of the All-Star Weekend staple.

It’s no secret fans are starting to roll their eyes at it … with randos competing against each other instead of franchise players. Zach LaVine, Aaron Gordon and G League star Mac McClung have certainly helped the cause … but overall, it’s been a dud for quite some time.

A big criticism is the fact that LeBron James never took part at any point in his career … and the same can be said for other superstars.

Dr. J shut down the idea of making it mandatory to participate … but he did encourage the household names to step up.

Erving suggested they educate themselves on the contest … and he feels if they do, they’ll change their stance on sitting out.

He added the players make too much money to be required to do anything nowadays — that includes suiting up for games (spicy!!)

So, will the best of the best strove for slam dunk greatness moving forward?? If they do, we have Erving to thank.