Vince Carter is set to become the first player from the Toronto Raptors to get his jersey retired. The jersey retirement will happen tonight when the Raptors face the Sacramento Kings. So, to celebrate Carter’s number 15 jersey hanging to the rafters, I decided to list the top 15 Vince Carter moments as a Raptor.
This is not a list where I am listing 15 plays from Carter’s time as a Raptor. It’s more of listing moments off and on the court. Some of those moments will include him not as a Raptor, but it is related to the team.
15. First NBA regular season game
When Vince Carter started his NBA career, the league was in a lockout. The lockout was like a strike for NBA players because the league and the players’ union did not reach an agreement to a new collective bargaining agreement.
That is why the 1998-99 season did not start in October. Fortunately, both sides reached an agreement, and the season started on Jan. 20, 1999. And Carter’s first game took place on Feb. 5. He scored 16 points to go with three rebounds, and two assists in a 103-92 win against the Boston Celtics.
And since that first game, the Raptors were getting attention. He influenced a bunch of Canadians and Non-Canadians to play basketball. Kevin Durant once said during an interview on the Dan Patrick show that the Toronto Raptors were his favorite team growing up because his favorite player was Vince Carter.
14. Getting drafted and then traded to the Raptors
The funny thing about Carter as a Raptor is that Toronto did not select him. The Golden State Warriors selected him with the fifth pick in the 1998 NBA Draft. And the Raptors selected Antwan Jamison with the fourth pick. Once both teams made their selections, the Warriors agreed to a deal that sent Carter along with cash considerations to Toronto for Jamison.
This trade changed the Raptors franchise forever because it gave them a franchise player. Before Carter’s arrival, Toronto was just an expansion team with no expectations. Carter put Toronto on the map in the NBA world.
13. Going one on one against Allen Iverson in the Playoffs
The playoff duel between Allen Iverson and Vince Carter was epic. In the first game, the Toronto Raptors won thanks to Carter’s 35 points, two rebounds, and seven assists performance while Iverson finished the game with 36 points, eight rebounds, and four assists.
In the second game, the 76ers won because of Iverson’s 54 points, five rebounds, and four assists performance. But not only did Carter come back with 50 points in game three, the Raptors destroyed the 76ers with a 24-point blowout game.
Philly countered that blowout by beating Toronto two straight games which included a 33-point blowout. But Toronto won game six thanks to Carter’s 39 points. But eventually, the Raptors were eliminated by the 76ers after Carter missed the game-winner.
12. Giving up his All-Star starter spot to Michael Jordan
During the 2002-03 season, Carter was selected as an All-Star starter for the Eastern Conference. But he decided to give that spot to Michael Jordan because it was his final All-Star game. What Carter did was a cool moment. He let a legend take his spot when Carter didn’t have to do that.
11. Scoring 51 points
What Carter did on this night, nobody else could beat this record until almost two decades later. Yes, I am talking about the night when he dropped 51 points in a 103-102 victory against the Phoenix Suns.
This was a franchise record for the most points in a game. This record wasn’t broken until 18 years later on Jan. 1, 2018, when DeMar DeRozan dropped 52 points against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Before DeRozan broke Carter’s record, there was one other player who tied his record. That player was Terrence Ross back on Jan. 25, 2014, when the Raptors were facing the Los Angeles Clippers.
10. Game-winner against the Clippers
The Toronto Raptors beat the Los Angeles Clippers in the Staples Center 95-94 in March. 8, 2000. There was 1.5 seconds left in the game. Tracy McGrady made the pass to Carter and he quickly shot the ball in it, thus ending the game due to time running out.
9. Winning Rookie of the Year
There are only three Raptors who won the Rookie of the Year award. Scottie Barnes in the 2021-22 season, Damon Stoudamire in the 1995-96 season, and Vince Carter in the 1998-99 season. Winning Rookie of the Year was just the tip of the iceberg for Carter’s time as a Raptor.
8. First Raptor to become an All-Star
History was made in the 1999-00 season as Vince Carter became the first Raptor to play in the All-Star game. That is an incredible moment for him because there aren’t a lot of players that can say they were the first All-Star for their franchise.
Carter played for the Eastern Conference team since the Raptors played in the East. They lose the All-Star game to the Western Conference All-Stars. He finished the game with 12 points, four rebounds two assists.
7. First Playoffs appearance
Five years after the birth of a new franchise, the Toronto Raptors made their first-ever playoff appearance. They finished the 1999-00 season sixth in the Eastern Conference with a record of 45-37.
That gives them a spot in the playoffs against the New York Knicks who were third in the East. Toronto was knocked out in the first round by New York with a 3-0 series lead. Even though Toronto went home early, it was still a pleasant experience because this was the first time that the Raptors were in the postseason.
6. First Playoffs series win
The 1999-00 season was the first postseason appearance for the Raptors. They one-up their success that year by winning their first-ever playoff series the next year. The Raptors finished fifth in the Eastern Conference with a record of 47-35.
They once again faced the New York Knicks but this time Toronto beat New York 3-2 and moved on to the second round. Their playoff run ended during the second round when they lost to the Philadelphia 76ers 4-3, thus ending their 2000-01 season.
They managed to go to the playoffs despite losing Tracy McGrady in the offseason. The reason for their playoff success was that Carter was having a career year by averaging 27.6 points per game, 5.5 rebounds per game, and 3.9 assists per game.
5. The poster at the Olympics
Arguably the greatest play in Carter’s career was the poster to Frederic Weis. The play when Carter got the ball off a steal, drove to the basket, spread his legs jumped over Weis then dunked on top of him. What made the dunk more impressive was Weis was 7 foot 2 inches tall.
4. Hall of Fame
Carter going into the Hall of Fame was a great moment for him. It’s also a great moment for Toronto because there aren’t a lot of players from this franchise who are in the Hall of Fame.
The only other players from the Raptors who are in the Hall of Fame are Hakeem Olajuwon, Tracy McGrady, Chris Bosh, and Chauncey Billups. So, watching Carter in the Hall of Fame is cool to see especially when he meant more to the franchise than the other players I mentioned before.
3. The standing ovation
Ever since Vince Carter left the Toronto Raptors, he would get boos from the fans every time he stepped on the court in Toronto. But that changed on Nov. 19, 2014. The Raptors were celebrating their 20th anniversary at this time.
And during this day, Toronto was facing the Memphis Grizzlies. This was Carter’s team at the time. So, the Raptors decided to put a tribute video for him. That video got the crowd to cheer for Carter. And since that day, Carter was never booed in Toronto ever again.
2. The jersey retirement announcement
Sept. 27 will be Vince Carter and fans of the Toronto Raptors will never forget as the Raptors announced that Carter will be the first player to get his jersey retired from the Raptors.
The announcement took place during the reveal of the refurbished Vince Carter court at Dixon Park. The ceremony will happen on Nov. 2. During that day, Toronto will host a game against former Raptor DeMar DeRozan and the Sacramento Kings.
Carter is also the 15th player to get his jersey retired by multiple teams since the Brooklyn Nets are also hanging his jersey up to the rafters later this season. The jersey retirement will be a part of the Raptors’ plan to celebrate their 30th season.
1. The 2000 NBA Dunk Contest
If there is a defining moment in the career of Vince Carter is the dunk contest in 2000. It was one of the greatest dunk contests ever. It’s certainly the best performance from a dunker in a dunk contest ever.
What Carter did during the contest was phenomenal. The crowd was amazed at the dunks that Carter did. Even players and legends who were watching in the crowd like Jason Kidd, Shaquille O’Neil, Isaiah Thomas, and Kenny Smith were astonished at the stuff Carter was doing.
The first dunk was a reverse 360 into a windmill. The second dunk was a windmill dunk. But it was not a normal windmill. He started behind the backboard, stepped close to the rim, turned, jumped, did a windmill, and then dunked the ball.
The third dunk was a bounce pass from then-teammate Tracy McGrady, which Carter caught, put it between his legs, and then he dunked. The fourth dunk was a honey dip dunk. This is where Carter dunked it with one hand, but his arm was inside the rim and the rim was holding him.
The last dunk was from the free-throw dunk. Carter said he thought of better dunks but decided to do this instead because he knew he was winning. He also said he would save the other dunks for the next dunk contest. Unfortunately, Carter never participated in a dunk contest again. But that is okay because it would be hard for Carter to top this.
