I'm from the great city of Toronto. In 1997, I had just begun following basketball religiously as a little 8 year old kid, intrigued by the Chicago Bulls in their NBA Finals series against the Utah Jazz. Since then, I began following basketball on a constant basis, and the only memory I have of the Raptors pre-Vince Carter is picking up "The Toronto Star" (newspaper) when I was around 8 or 9 and reading that the Raptors had just finished the season with a 16-66 [!] record, with a picture of Damon Stoudamire and Doug Christie accompanying that headline on the front page of the Sports section. Yes, our Raptors were pathetic. Soon, there was a lockout in the NBA, Michael Jordan retired (or so we thought), and the NBA began it's apparent downward spiral (as the media would lead you to believe).
On draft day however, the Toronto Raptors selected Antwan Jamison with the 4th overall pick, only to swap him for his good buddy Vince Carter, who was picked subsequently by the Golden State Warriors. And there it was. We had landed Vince Carter. I know VC is a joke now, but if you had the privilege of watching him day in and day out for his first 3 years in the league, you knew this guy had the potential to be an all-time great. People forget that he was a pretty solid defensive player in his rookie year. People also forget that he spent the entire summer following his rookie season developing an outside shot (something he previously did not have) , and working on his left hand. People forget that he promised Toronto a playoff berth following his rookie campaign, and delivered on that promise in a big way during the 1999-2000 season by leading the Raptors to the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference. People forget how ridiculously clutch Carter really was. I remember during the 1999-2000 season, Vince Carter had a game-winning shot (and one dunk) at least once a week for 3 weeks straight. The fourth week, he assisted in a game winner that was sunk in by Charles Oakley. On top of all that, the dude was a vicious highlight machine. I mean, every game, you KNEW Carter would do something crazy at least once. You expected it. That was the beauty of the phenom that was Vince Carter.
On draft day however, the Toronto Raptors selected Antwan Jamison with the 4th overall pick, only to swap him for his good buddy Vince Carter, who was picked subsequently by the Golden State Warriors. And there it was. We had landed Vince Carter. I know VC is a joke now, but if you had the privilege of watching him day in and day out for his first 3 years in the league, you knew this guy had the potential to be an all-time great. People forget that he was a pretty solid defensive player in his rookie year. People also forget that he spent the entire summer following his rookie season developing an outside shot (something he previously did not have) , and working on his left hand. People forget that he promised Toronto a playoff berth following his rookie campaign, and delivered on that promise in a big way during the 1999-2000 season by leading the Raptors to the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference. People forget how ridiculously clutch Carter really was. I remember during the 1999-2000 season, Vince Carter had a game-winning shot (and one dunk) at least once a week for 3 weeks straight. The fourth week, he assisted in a game winner that was sunk in by Charles Oakley. On top of all that, the dude was a vicious highlight machine. I mean, every game, you KNEW Carter would do something crazy at least once. You expected it. That was the beauty of the phenom that was Vince Carter.
Ahhh, how people forget.
Some of my fondest memories of my childhood include watching Raptors games with my brother, and continually being amazed by Vince Carter - both of us. I hated Kevin Willis, both looking at him and watching him put up his horrible hook shots, but if I got to see Carter play, my day was made. Kobe Bryant turned me into a hardcore basketball fan, but Vince Carter was the one who originally inspired me to keep watching and playing basketball. I don't think some people realize how big of an impact the guy had in Toronto. If you came to Toronto during the summer of 2001, you'd be shocked at how much this city belonged to Carter. The guy was a LEGEND here, no matter what any one else said about him outside of the city.
Regardless of how he left Toronto, Vince still has a place in my heart. Although he's not that relevant nowadays, whenever I hear his name, I continuously think back to the days when I used to tape anything that was Vince, or even NBA-related on my VCR. Watching those tapes again, there is one part that specifically sums up how much of a disappointment Vince's career has been. A local sports channel in Toronto (TSN!) dedicated a 5 minute tribute to Carter near the end of the 1999-2000 season, where they discussed how he had taken over the league following his exposure in the 2000 dunk contest. In it, they also mentioned a poll on NBA.com that asked fans who the most influential player in the next decade would be. Vince Carter was the overwhelming favourite, beating out the likes of Shaquille O'Neal, Grant Hill [!], and Kobe Bryant.
Fast-forward to 2008, and Vince Carter has not been relevant for around 3-4 years now. It's sad. My image of Vince Carter will always be of him as a Toronto Raptor, and nothing can change that. I salute you Vince. Thank you for providing me so many wonderful memories during my pre-teen years. I can't begin to tell you how many times you made me jump out of my seat with all the plays that you made. Thank you.
...Let's take a trip down memory lane, shall we?....
1 comment:
just scrolling through your blog here, and I'm starting think this is some kind of joke or something cause it's eerie how much we have in common....
-asian baller from canada, currently going to school in toronto now, check
-started following bball religiously and have ever since i watched mj and the bulls beat the jazz in 97 as an 8 year old, check
-huge fan of kobe and the lakers since mj retired, and ever since vince turned into wince
-big 2pac fan, and love basketbawful even with the blatant kobe hate going on there
actually not making this up, its like im reading the blog of my long lost (evil? jk) twin or something...craazy
anyways since we're in the black hole also known as the offseason there hasn't been a whole lot to write about, but you should start again when the season starts, really enjoyed the stuff that you've done up to now...get back at me when you get this man, peace
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