What if Mcgrady stayed in toronto??

[Lebron23]

Do you think a tandem of Carter and Mcgrady could've been title contender in the Eastern Conference instead of the Jason Kidd Led Nets??

http://www.raptorsrepublic.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/vincecartertracy.jpg

http://torontosportsmedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/6a00e54f9153e088330147e293607e970b-800wi.jpg

[STATUTORY]

broke man's MJ/Pippen

don't think they would have beaten lakers

[Velocirap31]

TMac didn't want to be Pippen. The Raptors would have been a force for sure though, oh well.

[Lebron23]

TMac didn't want to be Pippen. The Raptors would have been a force for sure though, oh well.


I agree. Mcgrady started to elevate his game after he signed with the Orlando Magic.

[wang4three]

Don't think they would've gotten past Detroit.

[Dragonyeuw]

TMac didn't want to be Pippen. The Raptors would have been a force for sure though, oh well.

Which I don't understand, because Tmac wasn't going to Orlando to be 'the man', Grant Hill was going to be that until we saw that he wasnt going to completely recover from his injuries. Tmac subsequently responded to that by developing into one of the alltime great offensive talents.

It would have been interesting seeing Vince and Tmac develop over the years, I could see them being ECF contenders with a good defensive squad around them, but not sure if that gets them past the mid 2000's Pistons or Miami.

[Clifton]

Give Tmac and Vince a coach like Doc Rivers, make a deal with the devil to keep them both injury-free, and add some good vets around them, and they'd make the Finals at least twice. I think they'd win around 1 ring, maybe 2, if they play together into their 30s. More, if the right player came along to make a "Big 3."


TMac didn't want to be Pippen. The Raptors would have been a force for sure though, oh well.
Not sure about that. He's indicated in interviews, and it's been said of him many times by guys that knew him, that he was only reluctantly a take over player.

The real problem would have been Vince not wanting to be a MJ type player, IMO.

Can't you just imagine Tmac averaging 22/8/8 and playing almost as good defense as Pip? Wouldn't that just be delicious? And you know the 22 would just be effortless. Not having to exert himself so much, he would have been healthier and had a way longer career.

[Bandito]

I think that tandem wouldve worked out. Vince and Tmac were beast that like to share the ball and were great teammates to everyone they met.

[Dragonyeuw]

Not sure about that. He's indicated in interviews, and it's been said of him many times by guys that knew him, that he was only reluctantly a take over player.



Interesting. From the time he hit Orlando you'd never guess that he was a reluctant scorer. The guy had one of the smoothest offensive games ever, really seemed born to play the game of game he showed in Orlando and early Houston days.

[ImmortalNemesis]

Probably would've beaten Philly in 2001, and lost to LA in the Finals.

Don't know if they would have won a chip.

'02 Raptors with Vince, McGrady and Hakeem :lebronamazed:

[Dragonyeuw]

'02 Raptors with Vince, McGrady and Hakeem :lebronamazed:

Hakeem was a 39 year old role 7ppg and 6rpg roleplayer by that point.

[GreggPopazit]

Which I don't understand, because Tmac wasn't going to Orlando to be 'the man', Grant Hill was going to be that until we saw that he wasnt going to completely recover from his injuries. Tmac subsequently responded to that by developing into one of the alltime great offensive talents.

It would have been interesting seeing Vince and Tmac develop over the years, I could see them being ECF contenders with a good defensive squad around them, but not sure if that gets them past the mid 2000's Pistons or Miami.

It was also widely believed that they would land Tim Duncan too.

[Dragonyeuw]

It was also widely believed that they would land Tim Duncan too.

That too, which further goes against the narrative that Tmac didn't want to be second billing to VC. Because back in 2000, at that point in their careers, if they had all landed in Orlando Tmac would clearly be 3rd in the pecking order.

[Clifton]

The guy had one of the smoothest offensive games ever, really seemed born to play the game of game he showed in Orlando and early Houston days.
No doubt.

It was also partly a consequence of the post-MJ era. Just like how now everyone wants their superstar scoring PG (their Derrick Rose or Russell Westbrook), back then everyone wanted their superstar scoring SG (their Michael Jordan). The position was loaded with talent, much more than now, but teams were also playing a lot of iso-ball and pushing up SGs' FGA/g averages as high as they would go. The era that saw Stackhouse average almost 30 points a game is the era Tmac was scoring 30-32.

If Tmac's prime were 8 years later, he would have been one of the guys to jump ship to a "Big 3," average under 25 a night, and make the conference finals every year. It was a different time then.

Just for fun, look up how many players averaged 20+ppg the last few years, and compare it to the number of guys who did in, say, 2006, the era when Gilbert Arenas was flirting with 30/6/5.

[Dragonyeuw]

Just for fun, look up how many players averaged 20+ppg the last few years, and compare it to the number of guys who did in, say, 2006, the era when Gilbert Arenas was flirting with 30/6/5.

That was immediately after the rule changes. Everyone remembers Kobe scoring 35, but you had Iverson right behind him scoring career highs of 33ppg on 25.9 PER at 30 years old, after a decade of inefficient scoring. You had Lebron at 31ppg, then Gilbert at 29. You had Nash rise from an allstar to a franchise boosting MVP caliber performer. To say that the rule changes had immediate and obvious impact for already great perimeter playes is an understatement.

Speaking of which, on-topic, by 2006 Tmac was already on the slow decline from back injuries, but imagine 2003 Tmac in the 2005 season when the rules changed. He very well may have put up seasonal offensive numbers similar to Kobe.

[ImmortalNemesis]

Hakeem was a 39 year old role 7ppg and 6rpg roleplayer by that point.
Yeah, but it looks cool on paper :D

[jbryan1984]

ECF exit at best.