Vince Carter and the city of Toronto have had one of the more rollercoaster relationships the NBA has ever seen.
“Air Canada” is credited with making basketball waaay more popular north of the border than it was before. A legend in the Toronto Raptors history, Carter’s highlight reel dunks cemented the Raps as an extremely exciting team to watch, even if it never led to a Championship.
Then the relationship soured, and Carter essentially forced his way out of town while simultaneously securing his spot as public enemy #1 for Raptors fans. He would routinely be greeted with boos every time he took the floor in Toronto.
In recent years, the Raptors’ faithful appears to have forgiven Carter. With success coming to the team during the DeMar DeRozan years, it was as though Carter’s departure was seen less as abandonment than before. It’s hard to stay mad when you’re winning basketball games.
He’s even been greeted with emotional standing ovations in Toronto, and he worked as a special analyst during the Raptors’ championship run in 2019. Ahead of the Atlanta Hawks taking on the Raps, Carter discussed the emotional ride he went on watching the Raps win it all.
While some Raps fans may still hold bitter feelings for VC15, it’s hard not to appreciate what he’s done for the game of basketball in Canada. Lately some have even been hoping that he finishes out his career with the team he called home for a good part of his life.
