An emotional Vince Carter reflected on his difficult exit from Toronto as his No. 15 jersey became the first to be retired by the Raptors during a halftime ceremony at Saturday’s game against Sacramento.
“It’s not just Carter 15 going up, it’s all of us going up,” Carter told the fans before a banner with his name and number was raised to the rafters. “The memories, however you view it, goes up tonight. I hope and pray we enjoy our jersey being retired forever together.”
Carter walked to the center of the court to start the ceremony and raised his hands to encourage cheers from the crowd. He then pumped his fists and shouted, “Come on!” in response to their cheers.
Former teammates including Tracy McGrady, Antonio Davis, Kevin Willis, Charles Oakley, Morris Peterson, Dee Brown, Jerome Williams, Alvin Williams, and Muggsy Bogues joined Carter, his family, and Raptors president Masai Ujiri on the court for the celebration.
“He taught us how to fly,” Ujiri said while introducing Carter to the cheering crowd.
Carter had to pause several times to hold back tears during a pregame press conference. At one moment, when talking about his family, a teary-eyed Carter called his young son Vincent Jr. to the podium for a hug.
Carter, the only player in NBA history to play in four decades, spent over six of his 22 seasons with the Raptors. He was named Rookie of the Year in his first season and became an All-Star and Slam Dunk champion in his second, helping Toronto make the playoffs for the first time.
After being eliminated in the first round by the Knicks in his first postseason, Carter and the Raptors returned to the playoffs the next spring and upset New York by winning Game 5 at Madison Square Garden.
Before Saturday’s game, Carter mentioned that series victory as one of his fondest memories from his time in Toronto.
“Going through what (former Knicks coach) Mr. Jeff Van Gundy put me through with his defense, I was excited to have that opportunity to go against that defense again,” Carter said.
Carter is known for his impact on basketball in Canada, inspiring a generation of future NBA players like Tristan Thompson, former Raptors guard Cory Joseph, and current Raptors forward Kelly Olynyk.
“The legacy is still growing,” Carter said. “This is the icing on the cake.”
Thompson was among several players, including Stephen Curry and former Raptors Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, who shared congratulatory messages for Carter in a video that played before the on-court ceremony.
“I wouldn’t be here without you,” Thompson said.
During his early years with the Raptors, Carter earned the nickname “Air Canada” for his amazing dunks. As he faced injuries and his performance dropped, some fans criticized him for being less aggressive and opting for jump shots instead of driving to the basket and drawing fouls.
In December 2004, Carter was traded to the Nets in exchange for Alonzo Mourning, Eric Williams, Aaron Williams, and two first-round draft picks. Mourning never played for Toronto.
For many years, Raptors fans held anger towards Carter after he pushed for a trade out of Toronto.
A decade after that trade, the process of repairing the relationship started when Carter visited Toronto with the Memphis Grizzlies on Nov. 19, 2014. The Raptors were celebrating their 20th anniversary that season and honored Carter with a tribute video during a timeout in the first quarter.
During the halftime ceremony, Carter called it “a day I’ll never forget.”
While a few fans booed when the video started, most of the packed crowd of 19,800 soon stood and cheered. An emotional Carter raised his arms, touched his heart, and wiped away tears.
In his pregame press conference, Carter was once again moved as he remembered watching that video almost ten years ago.
“It’s something about seeing those highlights in this building, because that’s where it was created,” he said. Carter retired in 2020 at the age of 43. Last month, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Earlier on Saturday, a mural of Carter was revealed in downtown Toronto. In September, the Raptors also opened a revamped Vince Carter Court at a park in Toronto.
