Half Man Half Amazing: Looking back at the best moments of Vince Carter’s career

Rookie of the Year

Vince Carter was a sensation from the start and was the Rookie of the Year. His career got off to an interesting start being traded on draft night for Antawn Jamison, his college teammate. Further complicating things, his rookie season was delayed until January 1999 due to the NBA lockout.

Carter was far and away the only choice for the award in the shortened season, earning 113 of the 118 votes. Jason Williams and Paul Pierce were the only other players to earn votes. Air Canada, as he came to be known in his early years, played in all 50 games that season with averages of 18.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2.6 combined blocks and steals.

This year would start building up his reputation as one of the most breathtaking dunkers the league had ever seen, but the defensive versatility showed that he was much more than that. This amazing rookie season would lead to the Raptor’s first winning season and playoff appearance the following season.

The most amazing part about this was watching a young player transform the entire culture for an organization seemingly overnight. Pairing him with his distant cousin Tracy McGrady did not hurt either, giving them a star pair that they hoped to groom into future success.