A little over a month after his Hall of Fame induction announcement, Vince Carter is now being immortalized by the Brooklyn Nets. In a video on their official YouTube channel, the Nets announced their plan to retire Carter’s No. 15 next season.
It’s official: We’re raising @mrvincecarter15’s jersey to the rafters next season.
And we invited a pair of Nets legends to assist with the announcement.
🔗 https://t.co/IkjyKxMU3n pic.twitter.com/qi1khzBK39
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) May 15, 2024
Although Carter played for eight teams in his 22-year career, he may be most known for his five-year Nets tenure. Alongside point guard Jason Kidd, Carter was one-half of one of the best duos in the NBA at the time. Additionally, Richard Jefferson, who was teammates with Carter with the then New Jersey Nets from 2004-to-2008, said he had “never seen anything like Vince Carter.”
“I have never seen anything like Vince Carter,” former Nets forward Richard Jefferson said. “I was fortunate enough to play with LeBron, and obviously, LeBron had the size, but there was nothing that I have ever seen this man not be able to do. Left-hand finishes, left-hand dunks, 360 layups, handling it like a point guard. I think to me he is the most talented player that I have ever seen in my life.”
During his Nets tenure, “Vinsanity” averaged 23.6 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game.
With the announcement of Carter’s jersey retirement, the Nets will have eight jersey numbers retired.
15 forever.
Vince’s jersey is heading where it belongs.
🔗 https://t.co/IkjyKxMU3n pic.twitter.com/VfrFSqaCCI
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) May 15, 2024
Brooklyn Nets Announce Hall of Famer’s Jersey Retirement
Despite the Jersey Retirement, Vince Carter Will Not Represent the Nets at the Hall of Fame
Despite Carter’s Nets success, he has already revealed he will not represent the team in the Hall of Fame. Instead, he will don the colors of the Toronto Raptors, the team he spent the first 6-and-a-half seasons with.
“Toronto, Toronto, Toronto. I mean, it has to be. It’s where it started,” the Raptors franchise icon said on FanDuel’s ”Run It Back” podcast when asked by former Raptor forward Lou Williams which jersey he’d be rocking at the Hall of Fame.
“Yes, I had great years in New Jersey but it started (in Toronto), and my confidence, and understanding the player that I could be in the league, was trending upwards still in Toronto.”
Although it has not happened yet, it seems inevitable the Raptors will retire Carter’s jersey. Currently, the Raptors are one of the only NBA teams to have zero retired jersey numbers. In March, Dee Brown, who was briefly teammates with Carter in Toronto in the late ’90s, said the Raptors should retire Carter’s jersey.
“He should be the first player to have his jersey retired,” Dee said in his appearance on the “Forgotten Seasons” podcast. “People in Canada, even if hockey was their favorite sport, people started watching these two [Carter and Tracy McGrady] like these dudes are different. They’re special. You look at all the Canadian players after or during that era when they were young that have come through because of Vince Carter’s influence.”
The Last Word on Vince Carter
Carter enjoyed some of the best basketball of his career with New Jersey. Although he never made it to the NBA Finals with the Nets, he made his mark and left his print in the franchise forever.
