The Strange Saga of Vince Carter’s Cheap Shot on Patrick McCaw

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So let me start by saying this…Vince Carter is a pro’s pro who plays the game of basketball the right way.

With that being said, he absolutely meant to undercut Patrick McCaw on Saturday night in the Kings matchup against Golden State — he just didn’t expect the hit to mess McCaw up as badly as it did. He’s a clean player who did an out-of-character thing which happened to be ‘dirty’.

Here’s the play in question:

Knowing he was beat, Carter dipped his shoulder down in frustration. Unfortunately, it sent McCaw flying down to the floor instead of what he planned for. Immediately after, Warriors’ head coach Steve Kerr was visibly upset. A mic picked up what he said in the aftermath…and it wasn’t a compliment towards Vince.

https://twitter.com/The_Barftender/status/980299323773603841

Speaking to a referee, Kerr said, “I’m not mad at you! I’m mad at Vince! He knows better!”

From there, the wind was sucked out of Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. Carter, knowing he totally fucked up, was visibly distraught. In turn, Kerr, who obviously knew Carter didn’t intend to harm his player, consoled Vince while they both looked on.

https://twitter.com/LeadingNBA/status/980297890781253637

After the entire Warriors’ team came out to support him, McCaw wound up leaving the floor on a stretcher. A lot of prayers were doled out on Twitter after he left, most notably from Stephen Curry and the Kings’ organization.

What comes next is anyone’s guess. The Warriors certainly don’t need anymore injuries with the postseason creeping up. And while it looked like it was a broken ankle or leg, the fact that McCaw left on a stretcher means it could be more serious.

Kevin Durant said after the game that he heard McCaw “was getting better”. It’s not a lot to go off of, but at least it’s going in the right direction.

As for Carter, the play was dirty and it’s certainly going to haunt him. People bashed him online after the incident, including some ‘thug’ comments but they’re not justified at all. This is probably his dirtiest play in a career littered with numerous instances where he’s shown what a stand-up guy he is. Nevertheless, his in-the-moment screw up will leave a small ding on the good-guy image he’s cemented this past decade-plus. It’s the era in which we live now — public figures can’t escape from a three-second brain fart.

He spoke after the game and was still visibly shaken: