Vince Carter is a Toronto Raptors legend who put the franchise on the map.
He was the first superstar the Raptors had and he brought the team to new heights.
Unfortunately, a split between Carter and the Raptors happened that overshadowed his great tenure for the longest time.
Carter was traded to the New Jersey (Brooklyn) Nets at the halfway point through his seventh season with the Raptors. Toronto was in a losing state and Carter’s frustrations with the team boiled over. In an appearance on Taylor Rooks X, Carter explained how he tried not to be an issue and just wanted transparency on the franchise’s direction:
“I just didn’t understand it and I thought it all through. I had a conversation with my agents and the organization. So because my conversation was, they were ready to transition into a new guy, Chris Bosh, I said, ‘If you guys don’t need me that’s fine.’ But one thing I wasn’t going to be is a locker room problem, and I think that’s what they were looking for. That’s not my style, particularly after just telling you, like, wanting to help other guys and drop gems on them…It’s not me. It’s like, locker room problem? No, no, no, no. More so I’m like, I want to play ball, that’s it. That’s it.”
Since time has passed Carter and the Raptors now on good terms. He is being recognized and celebrated for his excellence in Toronto and the nasty divorce is a thing of the past.
Carter’s legacy in Toronto is an impactful one. He was the driving force to basketball growing in popularity in Canada and he is a big inspiration to many of the top Canadian NBA players now:
“Now, when you come back and you’re hearing what Jamal Murray had to say, Tristan Thompson has come up to me and said unbelievable things about how they viewed me as a player. It’s crazy to me. It gives me chills to this day because I think about that moment. This is an NBA player who’s standing in front of me with a uniform on in the NBA. You were my Michael Jordan. We’re not talking about just any person we’re talking about Michael Jordan and it was like wait, whoa, whoa, whoa. But that’s how they viewed me.”
They say time heals all and this is a perfect example of that.
Vince Carter wants to enter hall of fame as a Raptor
Vince Carter has been inducted to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame class of 2024. The official announcement was made on April 6 at the Final Four.
The 47-year-old has already made it clear that when he is officially inducted in August, he will be going into the Hall of Fame as a Raptor.
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