15 TO THE RAFTERS: Brooklyn Nets to retire Vince Carter’s jersey
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Nearly 15 years after they traded him to the Orlando Magic and just before he’s being invested in the Hall of Fame, Nets will raise Vince Carter’s jersey to the rafters. Half man. Half amazing. Whole New Jersey Net legend.
After months of speculation following his election to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and a few days of teasing across social media, Vince Carter is officially getting his jersey retired by the now Brooklyn Nets.
The team announced its plan to put his jersey in the rafters this morning with a roughly three minute long video beginning with his game winner vs the Toronto Raptors in 2006. Over the highlight a familiar sounding voice could be heard breaking the news to Carter that “his number 15 will take its rightful place among the franchise greats.”
“Oh s**t,” said Carter, with a smile on his face, after seeing a photograph of his jersey banner right beside former running mate Jason Kidd.
A message from Kidd then followed where he thanked and congratulated Carter, capping off the vaguely “Last Dance” style announcement video.
While Carter is most closely associated with the Toronto Raptors, where he began and popularized basketball in hockey-mad Canada, his time in New Jersey often gets overlooked. He played almost as many games in the Meadowlands as he did in Air Canada Center — 374 to 403 — and actually averaged more points — 23.6 to 23.4. His assists, rebounds and shooting percentage were also higher in New Jersey.
Indeed of the 25,728 points he scored for eight different NBA teams across four decades, a third of them, 8,834 points, came in those games for the Nets over five seasons. (VC, it should always be noted, missed only 11 games in New Jersey, all of them losses.)
And of course, there were the classic calls by Ian Eagle who VC now sits aside on YES Network broadcasts. Here’s an hour of them from our old friend, MaxaMillion711…
The Nets didn’t announce a specific date for the ceremony but when the NBA releases its schedule in August, look for the first home game vs Toronto. You’d have to think that’s a good bet!
NetsDaily and a number of Nets fans have long lobbied for the move. VC will now join Kidd (No. 5), Drazen Petrovic (No. 3), John Williamson (No. 23), Bill Melchionni (No. 25), Julius Erving (No. 32) and Buck Williams (No. 52)
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