Vince Carter - Hall of Fame Case - st0rmb11's Blog

st0rmb11's Blog

Vince Carter - Hall of Fame Case

Posted on September 3, 2011 at 08:56 AM.

(4)

(Posted in a thread on 1/6/2011)

I feel like I'm wasting my time trying to make a case for Vince Carter because you guys CLEARLY just hate the guy, but I think he's (statistically) a Hall of Famer. Sure, he pulled a bitch move to get out of Toronto, but when has character ever played a role in whether or not a guy is a Hall of Famer? There are plenty of guys in there who constantly have their will to win questioned (Wilt Chamberlain, Clyde Drexler), and there are plenty of worse people in the Hall as well (Rick Barry, Bob McAdoo, etc...all world class a-holes), not to mention guys who have tried to orchestrate a trade from a franchise (Kobe Bryant...multiple times). He's never won because...what has he ever been around? His best team was last year in Orlando, and they'll never win a title as long as Van Gundy is there. Even in New Jersey with Kidd and Jefferson, they had no chance because there best big men were Nenad Kristic and Jason Collins.

and what has he done? 26th on the all-time points per game list. Everyone else ahead of him either is or will be in the Hall of Fame. 23.3 career playoff average. According to basketball-reference.com's "Hall of Fame Probability Calculator", he's 62nd all-time, behind 61 guys that are in or will be in the Hall of Fame, and ahead of the likes of Kevin McHale, Pete Maravich, James Worthy, Lenny Wilkens, and many others.
over an 8 year span from 2000-2007, he averaged 24.4 points per game. Behind only Allen Iverson (29.4), Kobe Bryant (28.1), and Tracy McGrady (25.3). and ahead of future Hall of Famers Kevin Garnett, Shaquille O'Neal, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, & Dirk Nowitzki,...(for players that played throughout that span.)

I don't see why a guy's personality should affect whether or not he makes the Hall of Fame. and people never mention how much he sacrificed during that '09 season when Kidd and Jefferson were gone, leaving just Carter and Devin Harris, and Carter sacrificed much of his offensive game in order for Devin Harris to grow as a player.

Sure he clearly lacks the desire that Jordan, Kobe, Iverson, and others have, and sure he's never come near the potential of what he SHOULD have been, but he wouldn't be the only person in the Hall of Fame that you can say that about.

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Comments

# 1 bmj2k7 @ Sep 3

Love him as a player, just wish he would have ended up as a spur or laker so he could have made a push for a ring or rings

# 2 AlexBrady @ Nov 9

For me, Carter isn't a Hall of Famer. Supremely talented, yes, but lacking some combination of heart and understanding.

# 3 st0rmb11 @ Nov 9

that's a very fair assessment. I don't think he has the mental make up or the desire that you want in a Hall of Famer. I was simply making a case STATISTICALLY for him. He's up there with the best of all-time on paper.

# 4 AlexBrady @ Nov 9

No doubt, his stats are impressive and that is a big part of enshrinement. But, character trumps talent in basketball (and in real life too).