Vince Carter just announced his retirement from the NBA after 22 seasons, with his last bucket officially a 3-pointer on the night the season was suspended on March 11, 2020. The 43-year-old enjoyed an illustrious career that's hard to encompass with mere words — sometimes only pictures and video can do the man justice.
From acrobatic aerial mythology to some of his best buzzer-beaters, these are the five best moments of Vincent Lamar Carter's career in the NBA.
5. Vince Carter greets his former team with one cold-blooded goodbye (01/08/2006 vs. Toronto Raptors)
Fresh off his tenure in The North, it didn't take long for Vince Carter to cash in on some paydirt, taking a slim opening from José Calderon's missed free throw to impale the hearts of his old faithful.
Jason Kidd the fast break maestro, pushed the ball up court and found his backcourt partner four feet behind the 3-point line, catching him in rhythm as he fired a wing jumper against a late-closing Calderon to give the Nets a thrilling 105-104 win. Vinsanity scored 24 of his 42 points in the fourth quarter, extending the New Jersey Nets' win streak to 10 in a row.
Carter called this the greatest shot of his career at the time: “That's definitely number one,” Carter told The Associated Press. “The atmosphere, the emotion, the hostility in the arena, it was a fun game.”
4. Vince Carter goes off for 50 points, buries nine 3s in duel with Allen Iverson (05/11/2001 — Eastern Conference Semifinals Game 3 vs. Philadelphia 76ers)
The Raptors were hosting their first-ever second-round game in franchise history, and boy… what a game it was. The Raptors had just received a 54-point beatdown at the hands of recently-crowned MVP Allen Iverson in Game 2 of this series, but Carter had other plans in mind for the home stretch, dropping 50 points and nine threes in a shooting guard duel with Iverson, who only mustered 23 points.
Carter hit his first eight threes and was 9-of-13 from downtown, adding six rebounds, seven assists, and four blocks in an absolute scorcher of a game. The Raptors would ultimately lose this seven-game series as the Sixers made their way to the NBA Finals.
3. Vince Carter announces himself to the world with 2000 Slam Dunk Contest win
This was Carter's call to fame, as his rim-rattling dunks were as aesthetically-pleasing as they were thunderous in nature. Carter battled some of the best in the business, including cousin Tracy McGrady, Steve Francis, Ricky Davis, Jerry Stackhouse, and Larry Hughes.
Carter's dunks had no props, no outfits, and no frills — just the sincere desire to murder the rim and doing it in a way that seduces eyes and excites hearts. From the classic “honey dip” to the everlasting windmills, to the iconic between the legs dunk, Carter pronounced this contest was “over” (in the words of TNT analyst Kenny Smith) since the moment he took the floor in his warmups.
2. Vince Carter reaps Alonzo Mourning's soul with crushing flush (11/07/2005 vs. Miami Heat)
In his first full season with the New Jersey Nets after being traded by the Toronto Raptors in 2004, Carter delivered some of his airborne magic on Alonzo Mourning, one of the fiercest shot-blockers in NBA history.
Attempting to save the ball from out of bounds, Carter took two long strides inside the lane and mercilessly put Mourning on a bodybag with a reach-back slam that made his own grandchildren feel it before they hit the womb.
Carter later said that Mourning did not talk to him for seven years after he forever engraved his name in the Hall of Shame after daring to challenge the perennial skywalker in his very own domain.
1. Vince Carter dunks over Frederic Weis
Having crowned himself the 2000 Slam Dunk Champion, Vincent Lamar Carter had nothing else to prove when it comes to his dunk talents. Yet he did so at the biggest stage of them all, in the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Team USA was delivering the final punch on a clean sweep of the group series against France, when Carter intercepted an ill-advised behind-the-back pass and went on to crucify French center Frederic Weis, dunking over all 7-feet and 2-inches of his stature.
The French media dubbed it “le dunk de la mort” or “the dunk of death” — and what a death it was for the Frenchman. Weis was drafted by the New York Knicks with the 15th overall pick in the 1999 NBA Draft, prior to his play in the tournament, but he never signed with them or played in an NBA game — some suspect from the omen of bumping into Carter again.
Carter would lead the USA to a gold medal, a perfect 8-0 record in competition and also lead them in scoring with an average of 14.8 points per game, none more impressive than the two he thumped over Weis' head.
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