Mike Ulmer has worked for seven news organizations including the National Post and, most recently, the Toronto Sun. Mike has written about the Toronto sports scene for more than 10 years and has penned several books on sports and culture.



April 18, 2007

(TORONTO) -- Didn’t you know, the Raptors first playoff opponent in five years had to be led by Vince Carter, longtime Raptor icon, now starring in New Jersey.

Carter was joyfully cavorting about the court in the Meadowlands, Wednesday night, after helping the New Jersey Nets to a 102-92 win over the Chicago Bulls.

Chris Bosh and TJ Ford will be leaned on heavily in the post-season. (NBAE/Getty Images)

His game-high 24 points helped the Nets clinch sixth-place and a first-round meeting with the Raptors. The best-of-seven series begins Saturday or Sunday at Air Canada Centre.

At different stations of his career, Carter was the bedrock of the franchise and its biggest fault line. It is not ironic that he will return here, where the mention of his name elicits the most virulent booing of any player in any league. It is poetic.

The Raptors were fresh off unfurling their Atlantic Division championship banner last night. The 122-119 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in the final regular-season game of the year changed not a thing although the night did bring a chance for Andrea Bargnani to return to the lineup after a month away.

Word that Carter wanted Toronto had already worked its way here before last night. After the contest, the Raptors did a good job managing their fright.

“Honestly, I didn’t care who we played,” said Chris Bosh, the owner of a 23-point night. “Now that we’ve got the matchup, I welcome it. I’m sure he (Carter) wanted to play here. I don’t mind it either. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”

There had been much speculation that the Raptors would have preferred the Washington Wizards in the first round. The Wizards are freefalling through the standings because of injuries. The Nets, on the other hand, bring a powerful troika of stars: Carter, Richard Jefferson and Jason Kidd.

“It’s a challenge,” said Raptors guard T.J. Ford. “They’re a good combination those three guys, all star players who can do a lot of things but at the end of the day, you have to put the challenge on yourself to go out and stop them.”

Carter led the Nets to the sixth-seed with the win Wednesday. (Ron Turenne/NBAE/Getty Images)

The Raptors and Nets split their four games this season. Carter averaged 21.5 points in those games. The season before that, it was 27, before that it was 30.5.

Bargnani returned to the court after missing 14 games because of appendicitis and an acute sinus infection. He had 17 points and five rebounds in just under 27 minutes.

“He wasn’t as bad as we thought,” appraised Raptors coach Sam Mitchell. “The thing is we have to get him back to the defensive stuff. He made a lot mistakes defensively, as all of our guys did.”

“I was very tired on the court. I made a lot of mistakes, especially on defence,” Bargnani agreed. “I’ve got to get back in the game because I’m really out of shape.”

The night was an auspicious one for Raptor guard Luke Jackson. Jackson, a member of four NBA teams and one D league team, smashed his career high of 14 points with a 30-point night.

“It’s been a real roller coaster season for me playing on five different teams but I feel like that has helped me grow and feel comfortable up here,” he said.

The import of Jackson’s big game lasted about as long as the final buzzer.

It is now, and will be for a while, about the Raptors confronting their future and past, all in the form of one player: Vince Carter. After that, who knows?

“I think things have lined up the way they are supposed to,” noted Bosh, “and I think this is a beginning for us. We’ve been talking about the turning point of this franchise and you know, who better to play than the guy who helped build this place up?”