Raptors mailbag: Vince Carter haters, ESPN’s Zach Lowe blunder and who lost the Towns trade

Everybody ready for media day Monday, camp practices starting Tuesday and a pre-season game in a week?
Or is everybody like me and anticipating the Shohei Ohtani playoff show more than anything in the coming week?
Either way, here’s Ye Olde Mailbag to get everyone ready for what’s coming.
So, late night news. Karl-Anthony Towns for Julius Randle? Good? Bad? Ugly?
-Kyle C. in Mississauga
The quick reaction: New York got the best player and probably lost the trade.
They are thin and small, which means Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau might run six guys 42 minutes a game and they’ll all be broken by May.
I think Randle probably fits better with Rudy Gobert in Minnesota than Towns does but I’m not entirely certain a Randle-Anthony Edwards coupling works like a dream.
It takes a long time for the “winner” of a trade to emerge so I’ll wait a bit but this morning I think both teams lost the trade.
Doug,
Please change my mind.
In 2004, the Raptors fired Glen Grunwald. Vince Carter vocally supported Dr. J. The Raptors ignored Vince and hired Rob Babcock. In the draft, Vince wanted Andre Iguadola. He let it be known. Babcock wanted Iguadola or Jameer Nelson. Old Pistons Bad Boy GM Jack McCloskey (consultant) insisted on Rafael Araújo, thinking he would be Bill Laimbeer 2.0, to protect Chris Bosh.
Under pressure, Babcock folded and picked Araújo. Vince was beside himself, decided he wanted out and pulled what we now know as a James Harden, dogging it and demanding a trade.
But his dogging it tanks his trade value, so the Raptors are forced to trade him for peanuts. Carter’s numbers in Toronto versus New Jersey. In 2004-05 are astounding:
Until 2004, Carter looked like the player the Nets got. Only for those first 20 games with Toronto in 2004 did Vince look washed up.
Doug, can you please tell me why I’m wrong so I can get over my anti-Vince malaise? I’d like to let it go. I really would. But old grudges die hard.
Thanks,
-Tony in Albany, N.Y.
Nothing I am going to say or type for the ten-kazillionth time is going to change your mind so I’m not going to try.
But a couple of points need to be addressed.
There was no truth to the “Carter wanted Iguodala” statement; the reason many suggested Iguodala was so he could eventually replace Carter if a trade happened.
Yes, Carter preferred Erving and, given how history played out, who’s to suggest he was wrong. I respected and liked Rob Babcock a lot but he was out of his league as the guy in charge.
And I am confident in saying that part of the animosity toward Carter came because of the pennies on the dollar Babcock got for him. That’s on the front office, especially knowing that Carter went to the coaching staff THE DAY BEFORE THE TRADE and said he’d like to stay and work it out.
But, again, you won’t likely change, others won’t and that’s fine.
Giving what I know and the principals I know and the mood around the franchise, I know I’m right.
And I’ll add this one last point: If people want to fixate on three months at the end rather than five years before it, they’re missing the entire point of what Vince did for the team, the city and a generation of basketball fans.
Do you have an opinion on the yearlong changes at ESPN and their NBA coverage? The latest was Zach Lowe being cut. None have seemed to be for the better. If the bottom line is more Stephen A. Smith, ugh.
-Paul M.
My opinion is that ESPN showed absolutely no respect for its viewers, listeners and readers by kicking to the curb the best in the business solely for financial reasons.
The screamers have won, “hot takes” are apparently valued more than insight, context and reasoned discussions, and that’s a shame.
I have many friends who still work at ESPN and I respect the way they go about their business. But ownership there has shown where its allegiances lie and that’s too bad.
You say that “in some ways, having one owner provides clarity and that’s good.” On the first point, there will be less internal debate for sure — but clarity? I’m not exactly seeing clarity from the Blue Jays. And if there is clarity there, it certainly hasn’t been good.
I have to assume Larry Tanenbaum’s influence is now lessened. Can this be a good thing?
Does the clarity that the Blue Jays have had by Rogers ownership seem like a good thing? Is there anything they’ve done with the Blue Jays that you think they can bring to the Raptors (or Leafs)? I’m no longer a baseball guy, but the long-distance take is that ownership had a very good team and decided to not do what it takes to make them a better team, hoping that good would give them a good run. Where was the commitment to a championship?
Don’t you fear that Rogers ownership will make it even harder to attract free agents to the Raptors? If I were a free agent, Toronto would have dropped a couple of places in my list of preferred destinations.
You pretty much admit that Masai Ujiri is more likely to go sooner rather than later now because of this. While I can’t say I think the team is on the right track, I have to think there are a lot worse tracks out there to be on. I just don’t think Rogers ownership actually has any concerns about this, whatever happens.
I guess I’m saying I don’t see any clarity from the sole Rogers ownership thing on anything that matters to me. I see coming muddy waters — the opposite of clarity. I’m certainly trying to imagine something “good” that comes out of this, too, and failing to think of exactly what that could be. Time will tell. But the question for some of us is whether we keep shelling out the dough to this new ownership. Right now, for me, this leash got a lot shorter. I’m not hearing the right words from Rogers. Maybe I’m the only one who feels that way.
-Jeff V.
Let’s be clear: Anything that diminishes Larry Tanenbaum’s contribution and wisdom is bad. Very bad.
And, yes, Rogers has not turned the Blue Jays into a model of success and maybe that’s an ownership issue solely because ownership decides who runs the team. How that translates to basketball and hockey now remains to be seen; it’s not as if MLSE has a track record of pucks glory, though.
One major point: I do not care one whit about any team’s ability to attract free agents. That’s a fan issue and I just don’t care. I’ll explain what or what not did but “care” is not a concern of mine.
Does it really matter who owns the team? I guess we’ll find out.
Took a trip to your neck of the woods when an old chum moved to Port Colborne, Ont. A pretty spot, I can see the attraction. This also allowed one more viewing of a certain cataract that never gets old, unlike myself. What was it like to have something that stunning as white noise when growing up? It’s hard to imagine it just fading into the background.
Something else that never gets old is the anticipation of a new season. It’s even more fun when you don’t really know what to expect. Other than that you will keep us informed, of course.
-James A.
It’s been a long time since I’ve been in Port Colborne but I know a few people who cottage there and they love it. My memory is that makes sense, a lovely escape part of the province.
The Falls? It’s amazing, always is and will be but growing up there, about the only time you saw it was crossing the bridge for late-night sessions at Honey’s or somewhere on Third Street.
I do, though, have fond memories from time at one of the Marriotts.
This Raptors season? I’m trying to come up with some column to be published later today on what to expect and it’s hard because I’m not entirely sure.