TORONTO, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) -- Toronto Raptors retired Vince Carter's No. 15 jersey at halftime in their 131-128 victory against Sacramento Kings at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday evening.
In front of a sellout crowd which included many former Raptors players, coaches, and executives, Carter's jersey became the first ever to be retired in franchise history.
After playing 22 years in the league, Carter retired in 2020 and was recently inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on October 13.
"He is a legend, he's an icon, he's half-man-half-amazing," said Raptors president Masai Ujiri at the start of the halftime event. "He taught us how to fly and those who don't know how to fly, he taught us to dream how to fly."
"June 24, 1998 was the day all my dreams became a reality. Hearing my name called by Mr. David Stern is everything young athletes dream of and I got that opportunity," said Carter at the start of his speech. "It's because of you, Mr. Larry Tanenbaum (Raptors Chairman) and Mr. Glen Grunwald (Raptors General Manager at the time), I got that opportunity."
Carter's NBA career began in Toronto where he played seven seasons and led the team to its first ever playoff series win in 2001. Carter was a fan favorite, garnering the most fan votes in the All-Star game in four out of five seasons from 2000 to 2004.
In 2004, he requested a trade and was shipped to the New Jersey Nets. After the trade, Toronto fans reacted negatively to Carter every time he faced the Raptors. In 2014, a decade later while visiting as a member of Memphis Grizzlies, the reactions changed as he received cheers and a standing ovation.
After thanking his former teammates, coaches and family, Carter acknowledged the moment from 2014 as a pivotal one for making the jersey retirement possible.
"November 19, 2014 was a day that I'll never forget. Standing right here, watching that video, tearing up. My heart was full of joy to finally have that moment with you all. It was the thing that I always wanted and the feeling I wanted us all to have, which got us to where we are today," cried Carter. "An unbelievable day that has never been experienced here on the basketball side. I'm honored that we can finally share this moment together, finally."
During his lengthy career, Carter was an eight time All-Star, two time All-NBA, NBA Slam Dunk Champion, Rookie of the Year, and an Olympic gold medalist (2000). ■
