The Brooklyn Nets will retire Vince Carter's No. 15 jersey in a ceremony at Barclays Center on Jan. 25, following their game against the Miami Heat, the team announced on Thursday.
Carter played for the Nets from 2004 to 2009. At the time, they were the New Jersey Nets and played their home games in East Rutherford. In 374 regular-season games as a Net, Carter averaged 23.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.7 assists.
"We are thrilled to honor former Nets player Vince Carter, who contributed so much to this organization both on and off the court," team owner Joe Tsai said in a press release. "He is an important part of the Nets franchise history and we look forward to welcoming him to Barclays Center this season to celebrate his legacy."
Two decades ago, coming off a season in which it took the eventual champion Detroit Pistons to seven games in the second round of the NBA playoffs, New Jersey lost 11 of its first 13 games and appeared to be adrift. Jason Kidd was recovering from offseason knee surgery, and both Kenyon Martin and Kerry Kittles were gone. In December of 2024, though, the Nets traded Alonzo Mourning, Eric Williams, Aaron Williams and two future first-round picks to the Toronto Raptors for Carter, who had requested a trade months earlier. This remains one of the most lopsided blockbusters in NBA history.
Upon his arrival in New Jersey, Carter, who had spent the first part of the season putting up the worst numbers of his career in Toronto, immediately looked like the perennial All-Star he was. With Kidd, Carter and Richard Jefferson pushing the pace for a few years, the Nets produced highlights as reliably as any team in the league.
Brooklyn announced that this jersey retirement was forthcoming back in March, but at that point, it had not scheduled it for a specific date. Carter, who joined the Nets' broadcasting team as a color commentator for YES Network last season, got the news from Kidd in a video message.
Carter will soon be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. The enshrinement ceremony for the 2024 class, which also features Chauncey Billups and Michael Cooper, among others, is scheduled for Oct. 13 in Springfield, Massachusetts.
The Raptors have yet to announce plans to retire Carter's jersey, but, judging by their leaked City Edition jersey, they will honor him in at least one way during the 2024-25 season. The franchise has yet to retire any of its former players' jerseys.
