Carter made it clear in the 2004 off-season that he wanted to be traded from the Raptors.[18] On December 17, 2004, Raptors General Manager Rob Babcock traded Carter to the New Jersey Nets for Alonzo Mourning, Eric Williams, Aaron Williams and two future first-round draft picks. The trade to the Nets, combined with Carter’s continually declining popularity with Raptors fans, also put an end to his charity basketball games in Toronto, with the last one being played in the summer of that year.
In early January 2005, he stated during a television interview with TNT’s John Thompson to not giving effort in his last months as a Raptor; when asked if he always played hard, Carter replied, “In years past, no. I was fortunate to have the talent. You get spoiled when you’re able to do a lot of things. You see that you don’t have to work at it.”[19] However, it was shown later that his comments were misconstrued and edited for television. Thompson himself later stated, ““That boy never said to me, ‘Coach, I just laid down and quit…I was embarrassed and felt awful about it for his sake, because I knew what he was communicating to me. I think he was more expressing a desire of wanting to do better, as we all do.” [20]
Months after the TNT interview, Carter returned to Toronto as a member of the Nets on April 15, 2005. Carter scored 39 points in front of a hostile Toronto Raptors crowd that booed him throughout. The fans jeered him the entire game, but the Carter and the Nets triumphed 101–90. At the end of the game, Carter was overheard clutching the game ball exclaiming “this is still my house.”[21]
Carter guided the Nets to an eighth-place seed in the 2005 NBA Playoffs.[22] Although New Jersey was swept in the first round by the Miami Heat,[23] Carter finished the series with averages of 26.8 points per game, 8.5 rebounds and 5.8 assists;[14] highlighted by a buzzer-beating two-point fadeaway shot in the first overtime of Game 3 that forced a second overtime.[24]
Carter returned to Toronto on January 8, 2006 for the third time since his trade to the New Jersey Nets, and was given the same treatment by the fans that he received the first time he played against the Raptors in the Air Canada Centre.[25] With the Nets trailing 102–104, Carter hit the winning three-point shot with 0.1 seconds left on the game clock and finished with 42 points and 10 rebounds. Carter considers this winning shot as his greatest ever, considering the atmosphere, the emotion and the hostility in the arena.[26]
In the 2005-06 NBA season, he co-led the Nets to 49 wins, an Atlantic Division title, and the number three seed in the playoffs, while averaging 24.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game. He led the Nets to the second round of the playoffs before losing to the eventual NBA champions Miami Heat in five games. Carter averaged 29.6 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.3 assists in 11 playoff games.
On February 1, 2007, Carter was named, along with teammate Jason Kidd, as a reserve to the 2007 NBA All-Star Game, after losing out on a starting spot to Gilbert Arenas by 3,010 votes.[27] Both Carter and Kidd made their eighth All-Star game appearance.[28]
In a 120–114 overtime win over the Washington Wizards, April 7, 2007, Carter and Jason Kidd became the first teammates in over 18 years to record triple-doubles in the same game since the Chicago Bulls’ Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen achieved this feat against the Los Angeles Clippers in 1989. Carter finished with 46 points, a career-high 16 rebounds, and 10 assists. Kidd finished with 10 points, tied a career-high with 16 rebounds, and tied a season-high with 18 assists. Carter’s triple double is the second highest total for a triple double, second only to Alvin Adams of the Phoenix Suns who tallied 47 points and 18 rebounds over 30 years ago.[29]
After the Nets were eliminated from the playoffs by the Cleveland Cavaliers (lost series 4-2), rumors of the Nets trading Carter again arose. After the New York Knicks and Nets discussed a trade around February of Carter (which was ended with the trading deadline), the two teams again revisited the subject. Carter, who opted out of his contract on June 30, reportedly wanted a three-year, $60 million deal however, which the Knicks are wary of. On July 1, 2007 Carter signed a 4-year $61.8 million contract with the Nets.[30]
On January 24, 2008, the Nets played on the road against the Golden State Warriors. The game was broadcast on TNT, and at the half-time show, Magic Johnson claimed that Carter’s game was on the decline due to chronic injuries to his knees.[31] This was proven to be unfounded as Carter had hurt his ankle in an October game against the Boston Celtics which would hinder him throughout the 2007-2008 season. Hampered by injuries, Carter was not named as one of the reserves for the 2008 NBA All-Star Game.[32] This marked the first time in his NBA career Carter was not named as an All-Star. Despite playing with an ankle injury, Carter finished the season strong with averages of 22.7 points, 6.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists after the All-Star break. [33] He was one of only three NBA players, along with Lebron James and Kobe Bryant, to average at least 21 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists for the year, with averages of 21.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game. He led the Nets in freethrow percentage, assists and steals per game (81.6%, 5.1, 1.2). [34] Rod Thorn credited Carter for becoming a leader since the All-Star break, and said he believed that Carter could lead the Nets back to the playoffs the following year.[35] Carter’s injury was confirmed after undergoing a successful arthroscopic ankle surgery in the off-season. [36]
[edit] 2000 Summer Olympics
