| Tuesday, January 4
By Mitch Lawrence
Special to ESPN.com |
|
NEW YORK -- Vince Carter has simple plans for Y2K. "Same as Christmas,"
he said the other day. "Sit home and watch TV."
|  | | Vince Carter doesn't want to hear about the next Jordan. |
Then he can get back to the business of dominating the NBA, at the ripe
old age of 22, when the Raptors resume play Portland on Jan 4.
Carter has played less than a full NBA season -- 77 games to be exact --
and already, he's being compared to you-know-who. That other Carolina
guy, Michael Jordan.
Not that the humble Carter dares to join in on such foolishness. We
applaud him for that. At this early stage, he's even uncomfortable when
people prematurely push him as the game's top player. He gets a "bravo"
for that, as well.
"I just try to contribute and work hard," he said. "Maybe one day, I'll
be an ambassador for the game. But right now, there are a lot of guys
who are capable. Tim Duncan is doing a wonderful job. You've got Allen
Iverson."
There is no denying that Carter, who turns 23 on Jan. 26, is gaining
on those players, game by game.
"Some people might be surprised by what I'm doing," he said. "But I
felt I had the abilities all of my life. I just needed the opportunity.
These guys are giving me the opportunity. I'm gaining confidence in my
game and my ability and the things I can do every night."
It can be scary, such as last week's game when he poured in 36 against
the Knicks in a one-point loss.
"People are a little shocked by what Vince can do at his age," said
coach Butch Carter.
But there are too many other people who are ready to anoint him "the
next Jordan." Those persons should be advised that Grant Hill and Kobe
Bryant once were given those labels, too. Both are great players in
their own right. Neither is Jordan, the likes of whom we won't see again
until maybe Y3K, at the earliest.
"Everybody ends up disappointed when guys can't live up to that label,
and that's unfair," said Carter's teammate, Antonio Davis. "How are you
gonna compare Vince to maybe the greatest player to ever play the game?
People who do that should give him a chance.
"Michael Jordan did a lot of great things, for a long time. Vince still
hasn't played a full season. He needs to still get himself established
and make a name for himself. Let's let him get some years in the league
and see where he is. Just think what he'll be able to do when he gets
some experience under his belt."
That's another scary thought. We'll say this much: When it comes to
knowing what needs to be done, Carter is on the right track. Rather than
being driven by individual achievements, he's focused on his team.
"In my first year, I was looking forward to playing against the great
players," he said. "I've done that. Now, I just look forward to getting
this team into the playoffs. That'll be the first time in the history of
the Toronto Raptors and I look forward to that."
If it happens, is there anyone out there who doesn't look forward to
seeing what Vince Carter does come May 2000? And beyond?
Rim Shots I
Unless the Nets' Don Casey does it Tuesday in the
Meadowlands, Gar Heard will be the first NBA coach to attack the Knicks'
new big starting backcourt with exactly the right strategy.
Press over 94 feet.
When the Wizards are finished picking up fullcourt when they host the
Knicks on Thursday, the Knicks can also expect halfcourt traps designed
to force Latrell Sprewell and Allan Houston to a) expend energy as they
work the ball up the floor in an effort to wear them down and b) force
them to throw the ball ahead to Larry Johnson, Marcus Camby and Patrick
Ewing, all of whom are suspect ballhandlers.
"You've got make those guys use time off the shot clock," said Heard. "To do that, we'll go with traps and fullcourt presses. And at the other
end, I'll make them play against a lot of pick and rolls, and try to
make them exert extra energy on defense. I think if we do that, they're
not going to be able to go with those guys for long stretches. I think
we can get them out of that look."
The look has New York absolutely ga-ga. Some observers have even equated
the Sprewell-Houston pairing to the legendary backcourt team of Walt
Frazier and Earl Monroe. It's a ridiculous stretch, to say the very
least, since Frazier and Monroe are Top 50 icons.
One area where Sprewell-Houston can't live up to Frazier-Monroe: That
was a backcourt no one dared tried to press.
Rim Shots II
Orlando has to travel to Miami for Sunday night, but
otherwise it will be a quiet weekend for the NBA. By design.
Like everyone else, the league is a little nervous about Y2K.
But it's not as if the NBA had to make big changes to avoid a
Y2K-induced crisis. For years, the league has, for the most part, shut
down for New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. In the last seven years, a
total of five games have been played on either day.
So it's no different as we head into the new millennium. There are no
games on either day. The only travel on Saturday involves the Magic
heading to Miami. If the Heat hadn't specifically requested the date to
open its new American Airlines Arena, the game likely would have been
played Jan. 2 or 3.
In case there is a Y2K-related problem and the Magic can't fly their
charter plane into Miami, Doc Rivers team can still make the trip very
easily, on a bus.
Rim Shots III
It's only our opinion, but the only Babe we know of that
Michael Jordan could possibly defeat in a poll has four cloven hoofs.
Sixers prez Pat Croce's No.1 job continues to be to act as mediator
between Larry Brown and problem-child Allen Iverson. But a friend of
Brown's doesn't think Larry will walk at season's end -- unless "he has
something lined up." Larry wants to finish the job. While Iverson is a
great talent, "he's like a lot of the young stars today, he confuses
coaching for criticism," said Charles Barkley. "It's not." Amen.
Glen Rice Note of the Week: The worst-kept secret in the league is that
his agent, David Falk, wants Rice to get traded to Miami, pronto.
"David's doing everything in his power to get the deal done," said a
Falk associate. But why would the Lakers, the hottest team going now,
want to move Rice, at this stage?
Shaquille O'Neal isn't bluffing
when he says he doesn't want to be on the Dream Team for the 2000 Summer
Games in Sydney. Close friends say he's got no interest in picking up a
guaranteed second gold medal. Been there, done that in 1996 in Atlanta.
Mike Dunleavy's doling out of minutes is worth watching in Portland.
According to a team source, Detlef Schrempf has been unhappy with playing
time and everyone is on alert when/if Brian Grant starts grumbling.
Blazers again are too deep.
Turns out, Ron Harper's addition to the
Lakers might be Phil Jackson's best move. When Jackson needs to send a
message to his players, and doesn't want to do it himself, he counts on
his ex-Bull to let everyone know what's what.
Tim Hardaway's painful
knee could keep him out another month. "It's not acting right,"
Hardaway said. "It's not responding." Bone-on-bone pain rarely does. If
Hardaway, in fact, is out through January, Pat Riley needs to make a
major move. Everyone is catching onto Anthony Carter, playing off the
rookie point guard and challenging him to beat them from the outside.
Turkey
and FIBA, the international hoops organization, have had a change of
heart. It isn't going to allow Stanley Roberts to play. Roberts'
two-year ban from the NBA is now world-wide.
Mitch Lawrence, who covers the NBA for the New York Daily News, writes a regular NBA column for ESPN.com. |  |
Lawrence: Santa's NBA gift list
