SPORTS
Monday, January 5, 2015 9
From Pessimism to Optimism
The Past, Present, and Future of the Toronto Raptors
on its 20th Anniversary
part two: missing t h at t hird
element
kenneth cheak kwan lam › staff writer
I
c a n st i l l recall the date in which Vince
Carter put the Toronto Raptors on the NBA
Map: February 12, 2000. On this date in NBA
history, Carter, known as “Air Canada,” “HalfMan, Half-Amazing,” and “Vinsanity,” put on a
show when he electrified the crowd at the 2000 NBA
Slam Dunk Contest, an event broadcast live and seen
by many in North America and around the world.
Led by Carter, the team was competitive as the
franchise made the postseason for 3 consecutive
years between 2000 and 2002 (a feat that has not
been matched since). The roster had both talent
depth. The 1999 to 2000 edition featured Carter,
Shooting Guard Doug Christie, Three-Point specialist Dell Curry, Antonio Davis, Tracy McGrady,
Charles Oakley, Alvin Williams, and Kevin Willis.
The 2000 to 2001 team lose Christie and McGrady
to unrestricted free agency (who signed with the
Sacramento Kings and the Orlando Magic respectively) but had new blood in Power Forward Keon
Clark, Small Forward Tracy Murray, and Shooting
Guard Morris Peterson. The 2001 to 2002 Raptors
saw the departure of Oakley and Willis but the team
was able to replace them with Future Hall-of-Fame
Center Hakeem Olajuwon and Jerome “Junkyard
Dog” Williams. By all account, these players are
all solid performers on the court so how come the
Raptors never made it past the 2nd round of the NBA
playoffs, let alone win an NBA Championship?
The answer lies in Carter’s supporting cast. While
he was arguably the best offensive NBA weapon in
the entire league during those 3 seasons, averaging 25.7, 27.6, and 24.7 points per game in 1999 to
2000, 2000 to 2001, and 2001 to 2002, Carter never
had the sidekicks that he needed to take the team to
the next level. True championship teams that are
considered dynasties have 3 All-Star calibre players (Big 3), out of which there may be one or more
Future Hall-of-Famers. The Toronto Raptors, to put
it bluntly, never had a Big 3 throughout its history;
instead, what the franchise had during its glory
dates was a lone ranger in Carter with an above average supporting cast.
Even though the term Big 3 is mostly associated with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris
Bosh as they joined force to win back-to-back NBA
Championships in 2012 and again in 2013 as well as
reaching the finals in 2011 and again in 2014 within
a 4-year span, NBA history suggest that the concept
is not new. Case in point: Michael Jordan, arguably the greatest NBA player ever, won 3 consecutive
NBA Titles (first three-peat) with the Chicago Bulls
from 1991 to 1993 because he had Scottie Pippen
and Horace Grant as his wingmen to execute Phil
Jackson’s triangle offense. Jordan then came of out
retirement to lead the Bulls to another 3 consecutive NBA Championships from 1996 to 1998 (second
three-peat) because not only was Pippen able to play
the role of Robin to support Jordan as Batman, but
rebounding king Dennis Rodman was able to slide
into the role that Grant played in the first three-peat
by becoming that 3rd element that championship
ê The short-lived emerging dynamic duo of Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady.
Image source: http://a.espncdn.com/photo/2013/0826/nba_tmac_02.jpg
teams need if they were to achieve and maintain
dynasty status.
Moving the 1990s into the 2000s, we continue
to see that 3rd element in championship teams that
are considered dynasties. The San Antonio Spurs,
which won the NBA Title in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007,
and 2014, were predominately anchored by Future
Hall-of-Famer Tim Duncan. Yet, he had Superstar
David “The Admiral” Robinson playing alongside
him during the championship runs in both 1999 and
2003 not to mention that All-Star Shooting Guard
Manu Ginobili and All-Star Point Guard Tony Parker
were both on the 2002 to 2003 roster to serve as
that 3rd element (technically, this means that the
Spurs had an unprecedented 4th element on its 2003
championship team which no other teams could
come close to matching). Even though Robinson
eventually retired, Duncan, Ginobili, and Parker
continue to dominate as a Big 3, bringing NBA Titles
to San Antonio in 2005, 2007, and 2014.
This brings me back to the Toronto Raptors. As
dominating and popular as Carter was from 2000