The Rap-Up: The legacy of Vince Carter

As the Raptors ramp up its efforts to make the Play-In, this week’s opponents give us a chance to reflect on one of the greatest to don the uniform.

There’s a theme* in this week’s games for the Toronto Raptors.

*This is as much a theme as it is for that lady who watched in horror as every shape fit in the square hole

Each of Toronto’s opponents this week has a connection to the topic du jour in Raptorland: whether or not the Raptors should retire Vince Carter’s jersey next season.

Carter was drafted by the Golden State Warriors before being traded to Toronto minutes later. He played 3 seasons with the Dallas Mavericks. The VC link to the Indiana Pacers is obscure but I can’t be the only one who immediately thinks about this dunk when remembering Air Canada’s best highlights.

Finally, the Raptors link to Charlotte isn’t with Vince Carter but with the recently waived Kyle Lowry. Random, I know, but stay with me for a second.

With Carter being named as a Hall of Fame finalist, the likelihood of the Toronto Raptors having representation in Springfield is getting closer to reality. (It appears to be a certainty with VC’s latest assertion)

The big questions being bandied about is this: Should Vince Carter be the first Raptors jersey raised to the rafters? Should the honour of the first retired jersey be saved for the G.R.O.A.T., Kyle Lowry?

Debate it if you like but as someone who was a season ticket holder in the inaugural Raptors season, I can tell you that Carter’s impact on this franchise goes well beyond the 7 seasons he spent in Toronto. If you’re still salty about how he left the organization, you need to really think about this question: Would the Raptors have met the same fate as the Grizzlies, if they didn’t have a marketable player like VC to boost the product? Even if your answer is no, there’s no denying his impact on Canadian basketball today.

Every single player that represents Canada at the Summer Olympics will point to Vince Carter as someone they grew up idolizing. This is the best team this country has ever assembled, and each of them will reference the impact VC had on their journey. If that’s not worthy of a retired jersey, then what is?

February 26 @ Indiana Pacers

If familiarity breeds contempt, then Scottie Barnes and Tyrese Haliburton should be all fired up to face each other again. After matching up on Valentine’s Day and again during the All-Star Saturday Skills Competition, the All-Stars will have all kinds of familiarity with the others’ games.

Myles Turner missed the previous meeting due to illness but should be ready to go for this one. Turner’s been outstanding for Indiana this season. For the second consecutive year, Turner’s averages are better than his career averages (almost) across the board: points, rebounds, assists, and all the shooting percentages. His ability to knock down the outside shot while also being a menace in the paint has really opened the playbook for Rick Carlisle.

The Pacers have 8 players who average at least 1 made three per game. It’s no surprise that Haliburton leads the league in assists when he’s surrounded by four shooters at any given moment. They may not have a playoff-caliber defense yet, but Indiana has a solid core (Haliburton, Pascal Siakam, and Turner), a seasoned Head Coach, and a plethora of young talent (Benn Mathurin, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Ben Sheppard, Jalen Smith, and Jarace Walker) to be a mainstay in the East playoff picture.

Fun fact that may only interest me

Pizzas are packed with protein! Whether your topping of choice is pepperoni, bacon, ham, or Italian sausage, protein is vital for anybody — say a professional athlete — to recover from physical activity and maintain muscle mass.

If my understanding of pizza is correct, a team-wide dining experience with pizza as the main dish would appear to be beneficial to a team like the Toronto Raptors.

Prediction

The Raptors have scored 116 points or more in 12 matchups with the Pacers. Toronto has won 11 of those games. The only loss was on February 14th when these teams last met.

Indiana will be playing the second game of a back-to-back after putting a halt to Dallas’ 7-game win streak. The Pacers are 2-8 when playing on zero days rest and 1-7 when travel is required between the games. One of those 7 losses came at the hands of the visiting Raptors in November.

Just as Toronto was finally able to defeat an Atlantic Division opponent last week, they will finally produce a 3-game win streak! The Raptors outlast the Pacers, 129-128.

February 28 vs Dallas Mavericks

The Mavericks are wrapping up all its Atlantic Division visits this month (although the Boston visit is on March 1st). Dallas ran through Philadelphia, Brooklyn, and New York, winning all of those games in 4 days.

Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving are living up to the lofty expectations a high-profile duo like this would receive. Doncic is averaging career-high averages in points (34.3, which also leads the league), assists (9.6, third in the league), and steals (1.5, seventh in the league). Irving is a few percentage points away from re-joining the 50/40/90 club (currently, 49.4/42.1/88.0). With Luka handling point, Kyrie’s been able to keep his turnovers down to a career-low 1.6 per game.

Trade deadline acquisitions, PJ Washington and Daniel Gafford have fit in seamlessly and have yet to suffer defeat as Dallas Mavericks. (The previous sentence was written before Dallas fell to Indiana on Sunday afternoon) Dereck Lively appears to be the steal of the 2023 draft as he leads his class in Win Shares. Derrick Jones Jr, Tim Hardaway Jr., and Josh Green offer an outstanding set of athleticism, shooting, and hard-nosed defense at the wing.

This is a Mavs team that’s finally putting aside the injury bug that’s plagued them and proving to be a dangerous team to face in the playoffs.

Fun fact that may only interest me

Kyrie Irving was acquired by the Mavericks via trade on February 6, 2023.

Damian Lillard was acquired by the Bucks via trade on September 27, 2023.

Irving and Doncic have played 46 games together.

Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo have played 51 games together.

Prediction

Dallas will be playing its third game in four nights and the second of a back-to-back. The Mavericks are in the midst of a four-game road trip that started in Indiana then passed through Cleveland the night before this visit to Toronto, and ending in Boston.

While the Raptors were able to defeat the Mavericks in Dallas earlier this season, it’s worth noting that Toronto’s top 3 scorers combined for 75 of the team’s 127 points — and have all been traded away (Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, and Dennis Schroder).

During the Masai Ujiri era, the Raptors have only lost twice at home to the Mavericks. Toronto, however, has struggled against teams that are locked in defensively. Dallas has been better than every team (#1 over the last two weeks, before Sunday’s game). Despite playing on tired legs and in a building where they’ve historically had trouble racking up wins, the Mavericks prevail over the Raptors, 113-104.

March 1 vs Golden State Warriors

We’re living in an NBA world where two of the best seven 5-man lineups include Andrew Wiggins and Brandin Podziemski. Look a little closer and Podz is the only rookie in the top-10 list!

After falling to a season-worst four games under .500 on February 3rd, the Warriors have righted the ship and won 8 of its last 10 games. The schedule hasn’t been easy but their recent success has included wins over the Sixers, Pacers, Suns, Jazz (x2), and Lakers.

Klay Thompson was moved to the bench and responded as well as anyone — let alone Steve Kerr — could have imagined. In his first game as a reserve since his rookie season, Thompson scored a season-best 35 points in a tight win in Utah.

Thompson’s move to the bench coincides with the emergence of Jonathan Kuminga. Drafted 3 picks after Scottie Barnes, Kuminga is also having a breakout season. He’s passed Klay with the 2nd-highest usage rate on the team, behind Steph Curry, obviously.

Earlier this month, Curry, who is closing in on his 36th birthday, surpassed 32-year-old Steph Curry as the 2nd-oldest player in NBA history to score 60 points. (Kobe Bryant was 37 when he dropped 60 in his final game). Legendary!

Fun fact that may only interest me

Podziemski’s last name is NOT pronounced POD-ZEE-EM-SKEE. According to Basketball Reference, it’s pronounced POE-JEM-SKEE.

I have clearly not been tuning into Warriors broadcasts this season.

Prediction

Close your eyes because Golden State has a lot of numbers that work in their favour! The Warriors’ best win percentage is when they play on zero days rest (8-4). Golden State is far better against the East (13-6) than against the West (16-20). The Warriors really like playing the Atlantic Division, where they’ve won 5 of their 6 meetings.

Of course, their only loss against the Atlantic came on January 7 when the Raptors visited San Francisco! RJ Barrett, in his 4th game as a Raptor, scored a season-high 37 points, to go along with 6 rebounds, 6 assists, and a season-high 5 triples.

Whether they’re hitting from deep (6th in three-point accuracy) or crashing the offensive glass (3rd in offensive rebound percentage), the Warriors have the tools to frustrate the Raptors. Golden State steals a victory in Toronto, winning 120-115.

March 3 vs Charlotte Hornets

Charlotte and Toronto are much more similar than either fan base would like to admit.

The Hornets traded away its largest trade asset by contract value (Gordon Hayward), most valuable trade asset & best defender (Terry Rozier), and another core piece who spent a good portion of the season as a starter (PJ Washington).

You could say the same about the Raptors by replacing the names in the previous paragraph with Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, and Dennis Schroder.

In Charlotte’s case, they’ve chosen to focus on the core of LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller to build the roster around. Toronto may be further along in terms of trotting out a more seasoned starting five, but there’s no doubt these two teams have the young talent in place to make noise in the not-so-distant future.

Fun fact that may only interest me

The aforementioned Mavericks just reeled off 7 wins in a row — or 21.2% of its season win total.

The Hornets have not had as much success in the wins department. So, Charlotte’s recent 4-game win streak was much more impressive, as it amounted to 28.6% of its season win total.

Prediction

This will be the only Raptors opponent this week that is NOT playing the second game of a back-to-back! Toronto has won the last 6 home games when Charlotte has come to town. The Raptors have also won 6 of the last 7 and 10 of the last 13 matchups overall (each of the 3 losses occurring in Charlotte).

Don’t let Charlotte’s record fool you! Yes, they’re still lottery-bound and in the running for a top pick, but this team has found new life since the trade deadline. Each of the Hornets’ trade deadline acquisitions (Davis Bertans, Seth Curry, Tre Mann, Vasilije Micic, and Grant Williams) is playing with the proverbial chips on their shoulders. Small sample size but Williams is averaging 17 points and 5 rebounds on 48/39/93 shooting.

What’s most impressive is that the 28th-ranked defense has held its last 6 opponents to 107 points or less — unreal numbers considering today’s offenses. Unsurprisingly, Charlotte has won 5 of those 6 games. Toronto needed 17 threes on 51% shooting from deep (both top-4 numbers for the Raptors this season) to squeak by the Hornets three weeks ago. The Hornets and their rejuvenated defense keep the Raptors at bay and win 106-103.

********

Last Week: 1-1

Season Record: 36-21