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Share on FacebookWhat NBA coaches and general managers are saying about "Vinsanity":
Lenny Wilkens, Toronto Raptors head coach
I've finally got the kind of player that can take the big shot, make the big play, when there's six seconds left and the game is on the line. And I'm loving every minute of it.
With Vince, I would rank him up there with all the great players who've played the game, and he's still maturing. He has great athleticism, but he also has a great feel for the game. I tell him the sky should be the limit. That should be your goal – the sky. It's a good goal to have, because even if you don't touch the sky, you can make the stars or the moon, and that's pretty good, too.
 Get the NBA Experience: read what NBA personalities have to say about playing with or against Vince Carter. (Ron Turenne/NBAE/Getty Images) |
We've been lucky – really lucky. Vince has been a gem from the start. You have to remember, he came to us at a time when we were way down. Nobody wanted anything to do with us, and we needed someone like him. I guess you could say everybody does.
Butch Carter, former Toronto Raptors head coach
It shows you the dedication he has. He's not going to be satisfied with himself until he's a complete player. A lot of young players think they can just get by on their talent, they don't realize how much work has to be done to improve. When we give him something to work on, he does it.
Flip Saunders, Minnesota Timberwolves head coach
I want to see somebody better than Vince Carter. He single-handedly beat us.
Jeff Van Gundy, former New York Knicks head coach
People say give him the jump shot, which is ludicrous. He's got the ability to post, he has the intermediate game, he can get to the rim and he can get to the line, and last year against us hit two late threes to seal the deal (in a Toronto win). So offensively he has the whole deal. Those are the guys most difficult to deal with in our league. One-dimensional players – drivers or shooters – those guys you can handle. It's guys who have short, long and intermediate games that give you problems.
If he's driven, he'll be one of the greats in this league for a long time, and perhaps one of the greatest of all time.
What Carter's Olympic teammates think of his talent:
Kevin Garnett, Minnesota Timberwolves forward
He's the one that I think is going to be the premier player of the league. I know him, he works hard, a lovely game to him, you know? Plays hard and that's what is the so-called ax on the young cats. "We don't play hard, we don't want it as much," but that's just the old to the new, how they see us.
Antonio McDyess, New York Knicks forward
Athletic-wise and jumping-wise, he's probably ahead of Jordan at this stage. I feel like he's going to be the next Jordan. You can really see the raw talent in him. He's still learning the game, but he can really play.
Jason Kidd, New Jersey Nets guard, on Carter's dunk over French centre Fredric Weis
That's the next coming, Michael Jordan hasn't done that, nobody's done that. I think everybody sitting here, even myself as a teammate, enjoyed watching a player like that – and for him to be so young! He's going to put people in the seats.
Opposing players' thoughts regarding Carter's jumping and dunking ability:
Allen Iverson, Philadelphia 76ers guard and 2001 NBA MVP
Vince Carter is one of those guys who can take a quarter off the top of the backboard and put one back up there.
Shawn Kemp, Orlando Magic forward
He's probably the most exciting individual in basketball right now. Basically, he's a human-highlight film.
Ray Allen, Milwaukee Bucks guard
Vince has silly hops. He's just up there, almost making up his mind in the air. When he gets up there, he can do whatever he wants with the basketball.
Stephon Marbury, Phoenix Suns guard
You can write anything you want to write about him. Anything you got in your mind as far as what you can imagine, you can write. In a game, in a competition – he's the greatest dunker I've ever seen. I've never seen nobody dunk the ball like him.
 NBA legend Michael Jordan explains Carter's role in the evolution of the dunk. (Mitchell Layton/ NBAE/Getty Images) |
I'll give you a great example of the evolution of the game. In the slam dunk contest, the major feat was to take off from the free throw line. Dr. J (Julius Erving) was the first to do it, then I did it. What was different about the way the two of us did it?
When Dr. J took off, he ran. I dribbled, which is harder to do because you've got to get your rhythm together. People never even noticed that. That was my way of improving on what Dr. J did. That was taking it to the next level – the evolution of the dunk. And then in the All-Star game in 2000, Vince Carter took off with two hands from the free throw line. That's the evolution of how change happens.
Current and former teammates share their thoughts on Carter:
Dee Brown, former Toronto Raptors teammate
I've seen Vince play since he was in high school. He hasn't changed. Not one bit. He's still the same kid that got to this league.
Kevin Willis, former Toronto Raptors teammate
We go to different arenas, and they all come out because they know Vince Carter is coming. They love that.
Charles Oakley, former Toronto Raptors teammate
He's not like a lot of the kids, not too much into himself. He's about the team, not too much hype. Some kids, it's all hype. He knows how to play.
Antonio Davis, Carter's Raptors teammate
Before I thought Vince was all about the "oohs" and "aahs." Now, watching him before, in, and after practice, I see Vince is all about getting better and making his team better. That's something I didn't think he had before. Most guys who are into making highlight film aren't about looking at the columns to see if their team is in a good position to make the playoffs. I think he feels and knows what's more important.
Once he realizes how good he is, then look out. He's learning, but he still doesn't have a good idea of what's out there for him. One thing about this room: We'll let him know what we think. One thing about Vince: He'll take it the right way.
Jerome Williams, Carter's Raptors teammate
It's crazy. Every day I go to work it's like, "I saw something today you'll never believe. You won't even understand it." It's just one of those things where he just has a God-given talent to be very creative with a round object. To make the NBA you have a have a certain level of creativity but he goes above and beyond people I've ever seen . . . and I've played with Allen Iverson and Grant Hill.
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