It is foolish to minimize the country and a generation of kids who grew to love basketball and idolize Toronto’s franchise. He was the first global star to wear the purple, black and red jersey and introduce the team to the world. He was a great, electric player, the first transcendent star in franchise history.
Full stop. No denying it. and there was enough blame to go around.
To put that solely on him is simply revisionist history. But few things end in storybook fashion, especially in the cutthroat world of pro sports. The chance to make amends — to celebrate the good, and the growth from an ugly ending — is what’s driving the ultimate honour being afforded Carter.
He gets it, the franchise gets it, everybody should get it. “This is what I wanted more than anything,” Carter said when it was officially announced Friday that “I had six crazy years here, period. For those that know me, they know my love for (Toronto).
It’s just hard to articulate it and to get people to buy into that, but here we are.” Vince Carter was brought to tears when the organization officially announced they were retiring his No. 15 jersey.
And where we are is the franchise paying homage to one of its best. You can make the argument that but anyone can surely see If there was a theme that emerged from Friday’s ceremony to it’s that times change, people grow, and lingering bitterness from a four-month stretch of 2004 needs to be considered in the context of the six years before th.