Vince Carter would like to have his Raptors jersey retired should the Toronto Raptors retire his jersey
In my personal opinion the Toronto Raptors shouldn’t retire Vince Carters jersey however I do think because of the way Vince Carter played professionally he will eventually find his way into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
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How long did Linsanity last?
On February 4th 2012 the world was introduced to Linsanity which lasted about 12 games when this started to die down people started to think about how long Vinsanity lasted. The thing to remember is that Vinsanity didn’t last a mere 12 games Vinsanity lasted about 5- 6 years. That being said when you look back at the Micheal Jordan era you have to also remember the careers Jordan decimated during these times hall of famers such as Reggie Miller, Charles Barkley, Dominique Wilkins, Chris Mullin, John Stockton and Karl Malone just name a few. You’re reminded of what those players did for the NBA you’re reminded of how those players help grow the NBA which not only allows fans to appreciate Michael Jordan so much more but it also allows NBA fans to understand that every basketball player is unique and we as fans should appreciate the player for what they brought to the sport.
The reason Vince Carter left the Raptors and why it doesn’t really matter
The real reason Vince Carter was traded from the Raptors was because Richard Peddie lied to Vince Carter about future plans regarding the Raptors franchise he told Vince they we’re going to build a title contender when in fact Peddie wanted to rebuild the team which probably would have taken a few more years to do. That being said when you take a step back and look at the Carter situation for what it was it’s clear to see now that Vince Carter wasn’t a true leader, Vince Carter was and still is a nice guy and nice guys typically finish last.
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I think when Peddie met with Vince Carter he saw a cancer which is kind of the image most Raptors see when reminded of the 2000 NBA Slam Dunk Champion. Vince would often dazzle Raptor fans one moment only to embarrass them the next he would often appear to play half ass of three quarters of the game and then turn it up if you will in the fourth quarter. Vince Carter would viciously dunk the basketball one moment and the next moment Raptors fans would see Vince Carter on the ground with his hands over his face apparently in excruciating pain. After watching video replays Raptor fans most of whom are also Hockey fans would often see what appeared to them to be minor contacts to Vince’s body or face that dropped the young apparently not so strong NBA star.
This is one of the reasons why when Vince Carter was traded to the Nets and the Vince Carter John Thompson interview aired Raptor fans we’re so upset. Furthermore Vince Carter’s statements didn’t sit well with former team mates who probably looked at Vince Carter differently themselves. When John Thompson asked the question Has Vince Carter pushed himself as hard as he should have pushed himself Vince Carter replied “in years past NO!”
That published Vince Carter statement is open to interpretation but it did rub most Raptor fans the wrong way and it should have; based on some of the questionable behavior Raptor fans saw from Vince Carter prior to him being traded. In pro sports you can’t exhibit actions like the ones exhibited from Vince Carter and be rewarded it just shouldn’t happen.
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Will Vince Carter’s have his jersey retired in the Air Canada centre?
Vince Carter, Chris Bosh and Damon Stoudamire as of 2012 are the best Raptors of all time yet all three left Toronto in ways that left a bad taste in Torontonians mouths. This can’t be coincidental could this be MLSE’s managements fault? Or could this be the fault of Toronto’s apparent insecurity regarding its identity as a world class city? Personally I blame MLSE management the Toronto Maple leafs are valued at 1.5 Billion yet they can’t win a championship or even become championship contenders.
That being said Vince Carter, Chris Bosh and Damon Stoudamire will all go down as very good NBA players they will not go down as great NBA players. At the moment it seems like MLSE is having a difficult time matching pieces to create championship contenders Boston has built championship contenders in many different sports, New York, L.A have done so also. If you listen to the Toronto sports media often it’s the players being attacked in my opinion Toronto sports fans should start focusing more on the management side of things. You can’t call Torontians cheap but you can call MLSE incompetent!
Being that Vince Carter, Chris Bosh and Damon Stoudamire won’t go down in history as “the man” I feel as though all three have legitimate shots at having their jerseys retired in the Air Canada centre. If you look at the body of work of all three they’re deserving of the honor however hardcore Raptors fans like myself will look at all three of jerseys with a bit of resentment.
I would like to conclude this post with I think if Vince Carter makes a conscious attempt to reach out to Toronto Raptors fans and tell his side of the story people will be more understanding. I’m not saying it will fix the problem however it might shine a light on what really happened.