Vince Carter receives standing ovation in return to Toronto

TORONTO – Standing in front of a small throng of Toronto media about two weeks ago, Alvin Williams and Antonio Davis were asked about Vince Carter and whether it was time to honour the player widely regarded as the best to ever wear a Raptors uniform.

Both Davis and Williams were Carter's teammates during the prime of his career, including the 2000-2001 season, when, as a 24-year-old, he averaged 27.6 points per game and led Toronto to the Eastern Conference semifinals, an accomplishment the franchise hasn’t repeated since.

For Williams, Carter did more than help put the Raptors on the NBA map during his time in Toronto, though.

“It’s been way too long,” Williams said on the topic of honouring Carter. “He’s done a lot for not only us as a team, but for this country. You see the Canadian basketball players now who are in the NBA, they’re all a testament to him so that shows not only what he’s done for the Raptors, but what he’s done for the whole country.”

Wednesday, as part of the Raptors on-going 20th anniversary celebration, the man formerly known as 'Air Canada' received his honour in the form of a tribute video that highlighted some of his most memorable moments in Toronto.

And a visibly emotional Carter, now a member of the Memphis Grizzlies, received a standing ovation from a Toronto crowd that not all that long ago booed him every time he stepped on the floor and put his hands on the ball.

"It was a great feeling," Carter said when asked after the game about the crowd's reaction. "I couldn't write it any better. I'm extremely thankful of what they wanted to do and doing it. It was one of those things when I found out about it, going back in forth, how is it going to be, how are you going to feel, how are you going to react, what are you going to do? I don't know, you can't prepare for that.

"I think finally I decided to live in the moment and enjoy it . . . It was great. As I said, I'm extremely thankful for it."

Paying tribute to Carter isn’t only about remembering what he accomplished on the court as a Raptor.

It goes back to what Williams said that night a couple of weeks ago. Part of honouring Carter is about giving him credit for the legacy he left behind – the generation of Canadians he helped inspire.

Over the last four seasons, 12 Canadian players have been drafted into the NBA, many of whom have spoken candidly about what watching Carter as a Raptor meant to them growing up.

“Vince Carter was unbelievable, he was definitely my favourite, everyone's favourite,” Sacramento Kings rookie and Missisauga, Ont., native Nik Stauskas told Yahoo’s Dan Wetzel last March. “He came along just as I was starting to play basketball seriously.”

Boston Celtics sophomore Kelly Olynyk echoed that sentiment to the Toronto Star’s Doug Smith.

“He just kind of brought that excitement and that passion and that love for the game,” Olynyk said.“You could taste the excitement in the air and the atmosphere was just unbelievable. I think when he got there, and after the first couple years, he really excited the community and brought the community into everything.”

Still, it’s complicated. While fans gave Carter a standing ovation during the video tribute, there were still boos and least a few ‘VC sucks’ chants from the Toronto faithful when he checked into the game and throughout the night. There is undoubtedly still a portion of the fan base that isn’t necessarily ready yet to forgive a player who quit on his teammates, demanded a trade and handcuffed the franchise all those years ago.

It may be years before Carter can walk into the Air Canada Centre and not hear any jeers, but comparing the reaction he received Wednesday to the one he got upon his return to Toronto as a member of the Nets almost nine years ago, it seems this city may be on its way to forgiving an all-time great.