23 years ago, Vince Carter entered the legend of basketball with what remains for many the most violent and spectacular dunk in the history of this sport. Against the French team at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, the Toronto Raptors star simply climbed the giant Frederick Weiss, whose career was never able to take off thereafter. In an American-style “oral history”, ESPN brought together the testimonies of certain actors of the time on this micro event which toured the planet and left a lasting impression. Here are the most relevant reactions.
Antonio Davis, Carter’s ex-teammate in Toronto: “This Olympic participation was just what Vince needed to channel his energy. I don’t know if something was wrong in his personal life, but he was constantly on edge and I wish that “He’s like that all the time. It was the difference between a good Vince Carter and a really great Vince Carter.”
Rudy Tomjanovichcoach the Team USA and 2000: “In training, he caught lobbed passes that were completely missed and far from the basket. He was jumping everywhere and catching everything to turn them into dunks. The guys kept saying, ‘Did you see that??’ Jason Kidd said he could throw the ball anywhere and Vince would still get it.”
Vince Carter : “I knew I was in a good position to make an interception. Once I got the ball I remember taking the first dribble, then the second, just to see what Weis was going to do. He never really faced me, he just waited there. I figured if I took off he wouldn’t have a chance of stopping me. He stayed there and I remember posing my hand on his shoulder as I rose up. I started looking at the circle and thinking, ‘Uh, oh…’ If you look at the footage, you can see that I’m tensing my upper body as much as possible because I don’t think I’m going to make it. Then the excitement came. No one could know what was going through my mind. I never thought for a second about the guy below me.”
Frederic Weiss: “I didn’t realize what was happening. The only thing I remember is Moustapha Sonko shouting from the bench as if it was me who was dunking. He was raising his arms in the air. Except I wasn’t the dunker…”
Tim Hardaway : “At the time, I probably jumped higher than Vince. Everyone jumped, it was like we were at Rucker Park. People almost burst onto the field. We had to control our emotions not to do it.”
Ray Allen : “I thought I was dreaming. Vince jumping over a guy as big as Weis was impossible for me. I couldn’t believe my eyes, what had I just done? to see? Did he really just do that? I almost forgot that I was on the field. I turned into a fan watching highlights. I’m still reminding people people that I was right behind this action!”
Jason Kidd : “Someone else had to be part of this action. I didn’t think it would be so derogatory about Weis, but it was because he was drafted by the Knicks. It made things bigger. I think if Weis had been drafted by any other NBA franchise, things would have settled down and he would have come here. He could have had a completely honest career.”
George Eddy : “A lot of people said that Fred Weis was traumatized and never recovered. That’s bullshit. He had a good match against Luc Longley and Australia in the semi-final and had a good tournament with a silver medal to prove it. He had personal problems afterwards but today he is fine. He is a businessman. People who say that Fred is a victim are missing the point of this story.”
2023-09-25 14:29:00
#Vince #Carters #dunk #century #told #actors
