Vince Carter

High school

Mainland High School

College

University of North Carolina

Pro team(s)

Toronto Raptors, New Jersey Nets, Orlando Magic, Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, Memphis Grizzlies, Sacramento Kings, Atlanta Hawks

Hall of Fame

⭐ Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame

Vincent Lamar Carter was born on January 26, 1977, in Daytona Beach, Florida, and attended Mainland High School, where he was a McDonald's All-American in both basketball and baseball. He chose the University of North Carolina, where he was teammates with Antawn Jamison, before the Toronto Raptors selected him fifth overall in the 1998 NBA Draft. No player in NBA history has generated the sustained highlight film that Vince Carter produced over a 22-year career — the longest in NBA history at the time of his final game in 2020 at age 43 for the Atlanta Hawks. Nicknamed "Vinsanity" and "Half Man, Half Amazing," Carter won the 1998-99 NBA Rookie of the Year award and became the dominant force in the NBA Dunk Contest, winning it in 2000 with a performance that many consider the greatest single exhibition of aerial artistry in basketball history. His defining moment on the world stage came at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, where he jumped over a 7-foot-2 French defender, caught a lob, hung in the air long enough that the defender ducked beneath him, and dunked — a play that became one of the most shared sports images of the early internet era. He was an eight-time All-Star who played for eight different franchises, earning "Vince Carter night" tributes in five different arenas. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2024. Born and raised in Daytona Beach, Florida.