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

Clutch Performance

The following season Vince Carter would make it out of the first round of the playoffs for the first time and put on a show against another up and coming culture changer, Allen Iverson. Carter and Iverson were in similar situations, carrying otherwise shallow rosters further than they could be expected to go. Iverson, the league MVP, barely outplayed and outlasted Carter in this series, but Game 3 will go down as one of Carter’s best moments.

In their first home game of the series, the Raptors were tied at 1-1 after stealing a game in Philadelphia. Carter knew he would have to do everything in his power to keep the series advantage with his team and he did not disappoint. The star played nearly 45 minutes, scoring 50 points alongside six rebounds, seven assists, one steal and four blocks.

No one else in the game scored over 25 points, with the Answer only totaling 23 points. Carter was also efficient, shooting 65.5 percent from the field. Carter showed that he could be the kind of guy you could build a team around, though this was mostly the last gasp for an over-matched team.

The Sixers would win the next two games and would win the series overall as Iverson slightly outperformed Carter and the Raptors could not close the gap. The Sixers would go on to lose in the Finals against one of the best Los Angeles Lakers teams the NBA has ever seen.

Carter’s final tally for the series was 30.4 points, 6 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 1.9 steals and 2 blocks per game. His next two seasons in Toronto would be hampered by injuries but this series was one for the ages.