Vince Carter Is Rejuvenated and Ready for the Ring

It gets hard in the swamp driving to the Izod Center knowing you are going to loose. It gets even harder once you see only a hundred people in the stands. It gets harder when you know you are probably going to score 20 points and loose by 20 points.

It gets hard when you know that you are never going to be the player you once were. Knowing you may never be an all-star or be able to jump over a 7'2" dude's head, knowing that you won't be able to blow by your defender like you could, knowing you will not be able to make the highlight reel like you once could. 

It gets hard when people hate on you for no reason.

It gets hard when you are labelled as a washed up superstar who is selfish and will never win because you have bad attitude. It gets hard when the media and other fans have labelled you something you are not.

There is a player who has been going through this treatment for the past three or four years. We knew him as half man-half amazing. It is the things Vince Carter has had to go through ever since he gave up on the Raptors at least that's what they said right.

He gave up on the Raptors right? That's what you heard right. Nobody told you the Raptors gave up on him right. Thought so.

Vince Carter has been treated pretty badly for pretty long. It was unfair labelling him selfish and cocky and saying he is washed up and saying he has bad attitude. Is it his fault the Raptors front office did not give him enough talent? Is it his fault he wanted to win so bad so he wanted out?

Is it his fault he is 32 years old and like most other 32 year old's is not as athletic as they once were? Is it his fault his body can no longer do things it could? Did Vince take drugs that would just make him play worse? Is it his fault the Nets front office is also pathetic?

Just because he can't dunk on players like he once could or blow by players and score 40 points in games like he once could does not mean he can't play. Vince did so many spectacular things with his athletic ability early in his career when he could and people thought if he could no longer dunk and no longer score like he once could that he was not a good player.

Of course, he is going to slow down—he is a 6'6" man over 200 lbs that has had many injuries and has played so many games through his career. The wear and tear on his body did indeed catch up and slowed him down.

But that does not mean he is not effective. It is stupid to say he is not because he will give you 20 points any day. He will even give you 5 assists and 5 rebounds on a good day. Which coach or owner would turn that down? That is a pretty good player to have on you're team.

It is the kind of guy who can fit in to a talented team and average around 16 ppg and drop 25 points on some nights. Vince Carter may not be able to do the things he once could but he is sure as hell a good player.

Vince, just like Kobe and A.I., has received unfair treatment from fans and people who hate on him for no reason. People who hate his swagger and the fact that he used to show off his abilities. Yeah...If I had the abilities to jump over 7'2" men and dunk a ball I would show off, too.

Vince may have not been able to answer his haters like other players but he had to much pressure put on him. People said VC did not play hard every night. UNFAIR!. How do you know he does not play hard? Is it because his body language is not good?

So if you drive to the hoop without a fierce look I guess you don't try hard. Vince Carter is misunderstood. But he is a tough guy who had to go through a lot of hard times through his career. He has not had a 50 win season and never been past the second round in the playoffs.

But he never really got a fair chance. He handled all the critics in a good way and took all the nasty things that they said to him.

But haters beware. Vince now has a fair chance. On June 25, 2009 he was traded to the Orlando Magic. He was traded to a team that has just made the Finals and has three all-stars. Vince is in a situation that he has never been in—a winning situation. If Hedo Turkoglu can succeed on this team, there is no way Vince Carter can't.

Vince is going to give them more points, rebounds, assists than Hedo. Vince is going to give them everything better than Turkoglu. With all respect to Hedo at this point in his career Vince is just a better player in pretty much every category.

Turkoglu maybe one of the most clutch players in the league, but Carter is that much more clutch than Hedo. Just ask the Raptors. With the game on the line, Carter will almost always answer. 

Carter will do everything a little better than Hedo. Even when he hits a 30 foot game winner he will celebrate better than Turkoglu does after his game winners.

So keep calling him selfish, arrogant, cocky, washed-up call him what you want. Call him that, but when he raises the Larry O'Brien trophy with the same smile he used to show in the early 2000's that is when finally forever you will shut up!