VC: 'I don't care' what Barkley & Magic say about me

[adv1s5]

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/nets/2008/01/vc-i-dont-care-what-magic-bark.html

Vince Carter was given a chance to defend himself on the court and off of it last night and he didn’t. As you probably know by now, Carter was ripped by Magic Johnson and Charles Barkley during the pregame and halftime reports of Thursday’s TNT broadcast of Nets-Warriors. Johnson said Carter’s “knees are gone” and tried proving it by showing highlights of Carter driving and laying the ball in instead of putting down highlight reel jams like he would have in the past.

If anyone remembers, during the tail end of his Raptors career he stated he "didn't want to dunk anymore". He didn't mean he would literally never dunk again, just that he'd rather lay the ball in than dunk it. I see he has kept his word.

Has Vince Carter been a waste of potential and money for the Nets? [/quote]

[Andrew]

Carter has a point. Just because Magic and Sir Charles are two of the greatest players in the history of the game doesn't mean they're right about everything all the time. However, they do know a thing or two about the game and playing it at a high level with passion and pride and they aren't exactly the only ones who share that opinion of Carter. A lot of journalists, fans and armchair analysts would say the same thing (and have).

Whether or not Vince Carter chooses to address those criticisms verbally is his decision but since actions speak louder than words, you'd think he'd be doing more on the court to prove the naysayers wrong. If nothing else, it's his responsibility to go out and play his best.

As far as being a waste of money and potential for the Nets, Carter is unquestionably a very talented player who is capable of being one of the elite players in the league...if he wants to be. It's not unreasonable for a player of his talents to be paid a lot of money and he's probably several years away from retirement with most of the years likely to be productive but for the money he's getting the Nets would probably like to see him at that elite level so many predicted he would reach after becoming a seasoned veteran.

Of course, in all fairness this could be as good as Carter gets and that's still a lot better than most current NBA players or most people who criticise him will ever be. Still, situations like the one in Toronto along with his performance this season do lead people to question his mindset and whether he has that competitive drive and thirst to constantly prove himself that other great players past and present have all seemed to possess.

[Jackal]

I remember when people used to talk about Bryant, McGrady and Carter in the same breath. McGrady was really doing well in Orlando with whatever he had to work with (before coasting) and Carter was exciting and all.

How time flies.

[Matt]

indeed..............now T-Mac & Vince are known as soft players that rarely play hard. Only LBJ can hang with Kobe right now.

[Sauru]

I remember when people used to talk about Bryant, McGrady and Carter in the same breath. McGrady was really doing well in Orlando with whatever he had to work with (before coasting) and Carter was exciting and all.

How time flies.

yeah i remember all that talk too, actually heard people argueing over who was and would be better of the 3. i wonder if mcgrady and carter stayed together on the raptors how thier careers would have gone

[BIG GREEN]

The lazyness probably runs in their bloodclat.

[Andrew]

McGrady might still be around that level if not for Yao's increased production and the back problems he's had the last few years. That's not to say he'd necessarily be at quite the same level as Kobe but his All-Star voting totals aside, his status as an ailing superstar/damaged goods not only affects his production but his reputation to a certain extent. A year ago he was averaging around 25, 6 and 5 which is still a fine stat line.

[Skills]

Speaking as a Raps fan, it's VC's choice..
His last great dunk was on Alonzo.
Even though he's soft now, doesn't mean he'll pop in a good dunk every now and then.
Just make sure he doesn't do it when my Raps kick the Nets ass in Toronto.

[Indy]

Well Charles and Magic are 100% correct. Vince didn't just decide that he would stop being an exciting dunker, he just can't do it anymore the way he could. That's a fact. It doesn't make Vince any less of a player though, it is his settling for jumpers instead of taking it to the hole that makes him less of a player.

[Skills]

Maybe that's why he didnt make the all-star team?
It shocks me, and I'm a Raps fan

[Andrew]

I'd say it has more to do with his numbers being down this year and fans rallying behind other players in the voting, not to mention the stellar play of others in the conference who are more deserving this time around.

[magickero]

If anyone here saw the Yahoo page recently, they named Carter LVP. Sadly, even though I'm a Nets fan, I agree with what they're saying. Just not the award. Carter has not been giving his full effort lately. But honestly, does it really matter whether someone lays in the ball or dunks it? Sure, a dunk has a higher percentage. But hey, so long as the ball goes in and points are scored, right? Who cares about the highlight-reel dunks? Those are all for show. Better a player who lays in the ball, has a sure shot, can play longer minutes, shoot from the perimeter, and play better than a player who dunks the ball, gets tired faster, has a higher chance of getting a charging foul, and can miss one or two (which is really embarrassing).

[J@3]

I feel kinda bad for Carter now, I think alot of the media just rip into him for the sake of it. There are alot worse players in the league, but also alot of guys who deserve the criticism more. Tracy McGrady I'm looking at you.

[Indy]

I agree with Jae. Vince has quickly gone from being one of the most overrated players in the league to one of the most underrated.

[Andrew]

I wouldn't say he's underrated per se since a lot of the criticism stems from the fact he's not living up to certain expectations, which suggests people still expect great things from him and such have a certain belief in his basketball capabilities, if not his attitude, competitive drive and mindset. The suggestion isn't necessarily that he isn't a great talent or capable of being a great player, but rather than he's not making the most of his gifts.

If anyone here saw the Yahoo page recently, they named Carter LVP. Sadly, even though I'm a Nets fan, I agree with what they're saying. Just not the award. Carter has not been giving his full effort lately. But honestly, does it really matter whether someone lays in the ball or dunks it? Sure, a dunk has a higher percentage. But hey, so long as the ball goes in and points are scored, right? Who cares about the highlight-reel dunks? Those are all for show. Better a player who lays in the ball, has a sure shot, can play longer minutes, shoot from the perimeter, and play better than a player who dunks the ball, gets tired faster, has a higher chance of getting a charging foul, and can miss one or two (which is really embarrassing).

In all fairness it doesn't matter if he finishes with a dunk or a layup because two points is two points, but I think the bigger issue people are referring to is the ability and/or willingness to aggressively attack the basket and his decision to settle for lower percentage shots rather than utilising his ability to get to the hoop. Last year 41% of shot attempts came around the hoop while so far this year only 35% of his attempts have come from that area.