Obviously, I am not an NBA GM. If there was any confusion there, my fantasy team is certainly active proof that I have no business making basketball transactions of any kind.
Nevertheless, the fact that Alonzo Mourning has the nerve to try and negotiate a buyout with the Raptors makes me only slightly less angry, than Raptors GM Rob Babcock’s willingness to take part in these negotiations. Why should the Raptors have to pay this guy off, so he can collect a big check only to go sign elsewhere for more money?
Wait, now I remember, because they got the disgruntled Mourning in order to trade Vince Carter, and that makes it soooo worth it. Don’t believe me? Just wait, you’ll see.
I hope Nets owner Bruce Ratner and team President Rod Thorn aren’t putting too much faith in Vince because he promised in a press conference that he wouldn’t let them down. If they believe that, and they’re counting on it, then it’s going to be a rough ride without Richard Jefferson.
I’d say the over/under on Jason Kidd demanding another trade and/or ripping VC publicly is about a week.
Then the injuries will come, the sulking, the judgmental glares from Michelle Carter parked in her courtside seat. Why any NBA player would want their mother to have season seats across from their bench so they could talk to them during the game is both creepy and far beyond me.
Shortly thereafter, Rod Thorn will be trying to come up with ways to dress up the seats at Continental Arena so it looks like at least somebody is there.
Same goes for Nike, who once seriously downgraded their usage of Vince in favour of Paul Pierce, but are now bringing back the brittle Carter with a new shoe and series of ad campaigns. Vince always made money for the Raptors and the league in Toronto, but the clock is ticking for him to prove he’s a marquee swingman, and believe me, he won’t meet the deadline.
In conversation with a photographer who does Raptors games for the Toronto-based Globe and Mail, he admitted that it was not difficult to see, Vince Carter is a player, who plain and simple, does not have “it”.
But New Jersey and the US media, who have reprimanded the Raptors management for trading away the unhappy all-star for “nothing”, and praised VC for playing impressively in his early days as a Net, are just being naive. They haven’t watched closely enough to know what is coming.
In fact, my message to them is simple: take my word for it, history repeats itself, everything old is new again, and now, the joke’s on you.
And to Vince, who recently gave an interview at the New Jersey practice facility where he warned against jumping on his bandwagon by saying, “if you hated me before, still hate me,” I can only say thank you.
Now that I know you want it, Vince, I won’t feel so guilty.