Credit: Lou Capozzola-USA TODAY Sports
Vince Carter is one of the greatest, if not the greatest dunker to ever step foot on an NBA court. Carter dazzled basketball fans in a manner that few had done before and he remains one of the most iconic players in the modern NBA. No one will ever forget the 2000 Dunk Contest where he performed a 360 windmill dunk and he also delivered one of the most iconic moments in the history of the game at the Olympics in 2000 when he jumped over 7’2 Frederic Weis for a monstrous throwdown .
It got to a point, where Carter’s dunks overshadowed what a fine player he actually was. He was a star for the Toronto Raptors and the New Jersey Nets in the 2000s and even had a couple of seasons where he averaged over 27 points per game, which is highly impressive.
NBA Fans Debate Whether Vince Carter Is A First-Ballot Hall Of Famer
We just had the Hall of Fame ceremony for the 2022 class over the weekend, where Manu Ginobili became a first-ballot Hall of Famer. With Carter who retired in 2020 being eligible for the Hall in 2024, Legion Hoops posed a question on Twitter about whether he deserves to be first-ballot as well. NBA fans ended up being quite divided on the matter.
“Yes. He’s the reason we still have a team in Toronto. No Vince, no Raptors”
“If TMac got in….he’ll get in too”
“No doubt he is the one”
“He’s gotta be a hof, like his nicknames half man half amazing and air Canada, also the greatest dunks ever in 2000 dunk contest”
“I’m sorry but his prime was shorter than his down years so he’s overrated.”
“Not a lock but he will get in at some point”
“Yes he’s a HOF player.”
“25000 points gets you in 100%”
“Hell no… he mailed in his last 2 seasons with the raptors and basically quit playing basketball until he was traded”
“Nba hof is a joke he will probably get in but he should not even be considered”
“Vince Carter isn’t a hall of famer”
“Yes AND the Raptors and the Nets should retire his number. He is my all time favorite player and the reason I love basketball.”
“Literally the easiest lock. Let’s add his high school and college stats Then let’s add what he brought to the game 4 time highest vote getter for the All Star game Top 20 in points Top 5 SG for ten plus years Can go on and on”
“Hardware and career achievements shouldn’t get him in, but his impact to bring the Slamdunk contest back and make Toronto relevant as an NBA franchise will get him in the HOF”
“Border line but no”
“Yes and there are a few more accolades to him then just this.”
“Obvii, don’t forget cultural impact #NoBrainer”
“I love Vince.. I really do but stop handing jackets out for the f**k of it”
“Had more washed years than good”
“besides being a great dunker, let me know what he did? No accolades, no finals appearances, no rings, no all first team, no MVP.”
Some very strong opinions on both sides here and they do put forward some good arguments. Carter is probably not a lock to get in on the first try, but he will most likely end up there at some point.
He routinely left fans with their jaws on the floor with his incredible athletic feats on the court and even actor Michael Keaton was left stunned by one of Carter’s dunks in that iconic 2000 dunk contest. There will be many more players who come up in the future who will be better than Carter at basketball in general, but there probably won’t be anyone who can take the crown of the greatest dunker off his head.
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