NEW YORK — After becoming a Hall of Famer in October and the first player to have his jersey retired by the Toronto Raptors in November, Vince Carter watched his No. 15 Nets jersey rise to rafters at Barclays Center on Saturday.
Carter, who ranks third on the franchise’s all-time scoring list and made three straight All-Star teams (2005-07) as a Net, averaged 24 points, six rebounds and five assists in 374 regular-season games for the team from 2004 to 2009 (when it was based in New Jersey).
The jersey retirement ceremony took place during halftime of Brooklyn’s 106-97 loss to the Miami Heat. Near the end of Carter’s speech, a fan yelled, “We want one more dunk!”
“Wrong shoes on,” Carter responded.
When Carter and his family arrived at the arena, a drumline greeted them in the loading dock. The drumline also played Carter onto the court for the ceremony. Fans in attendance received commemorative Carter bobbleheads. During timeouts, Carter highlights — and congratulatory messages from the likes of Dominique Wilkins and Eli Manning — played on the jumbotron.
Along with his family, many of Carter’s former teammates were on hand. Carter shouted out all of them one by one: Devin Harris, Bobby Simmons, Antoine Wright, Jason Collins, Ryan Anderson, Josh Boone, Nenad Krstic and Bostjan Nachbar. Both Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson were in Dallas — the former coaching the Mavericks against the Boston Celtics, the latter doing color commentary for ESPN — but recorded video messages.
Carter thanked Kidd for telling him to be himself instead of trying to fit in. He reminisced about “fighting in the air for lobs” and “making magic” with Jefferson.
Seven Nets players have had their jerseys retired: Bill Melchionni, Julius “Dr. J” Erving, John Williamson, Drazen Petrovic, Buck Williams, Kidd and now Carter. Melchionni, Williams and Erving were in attendance. Before Carter took the mic, Erving introduced him — first as the narrator of a prerecorded video walking through Carter’s career, then at the lectern. Erving said that “Vinsanity” should be added to the dictionary.
At a press conference before the game, Carter teared up when talking about having his jersey retired alongside Erving’s.
“I’m so darn emotional, it pisses me off,” he said, recounting the phone call during which Erving, whom Carter called his ‘hero,’ agreed to present him at the Hall of Fame. “I’m truly honored, period. Like, you said yes, and now I get to go up beside you? God, it’s crazy.”
Carter, who joined the Nets in a lopsided trade with the Raptors in 2004, said that he found “new life” in New Jersey, where he developed immediate chemistry with Kidd.
“My role in Toronto was just give me the ball, I can get you a bucket,” he said. And while he “didn’t mind having to work hard to get a bucket,” he appreciated how Kidd set him up.
“He made the game easier for me,” Carter said. “And then once I got comfortable in that role, I wanted to make the game easier for him.”
Carter, who played 22 NBA seasons, an all-time record, now does color commentary for Nets games on YES Network. He looks back on his time in New Jersey fondly.
“We hung out,” Carter said. “We actually enjoyed each other and played for each other, and that’s what makes it fun and made the game fun. I mean, Jason Kidd and I bowled together. We were in a bowling league together. So I think it was on Tuesdays, like, you come to your local bowling alley and we were coming to kick your butt.”
