Vince Carter shoots against Lou Williams (Photo : Harry How | Getty Images Sport)
The LA Lakers have young talent but they need good mentors on their roster. Vince Carter could be a prospect.
Carter is still under contract with the Memphis Grizzlies and the team is quite uncertain on what they should do with him as reported by SB Nation site Grizzly Bear Blues.
"Vinsanity" is probably the NBA's all-time best dunker and that's how he would be remembered. But it should not be forgotten that Carter is a definite franchise player who once carried the Toronto Raptors through what was probably their best years of contention prior to last season.
However, at 39 years old, Carter is hardly the same player anymore. Joe Mullinax of GBB suggested that this could be the final season for the NBA fan favorite.
"It is hard to envision a scenario under which this isn't Vince Carter's last NBA season. He has had health issues himself in recent years, and he clearly is not even the player who was a Sixth Man of the Year candidate in Dallas for the Mavericks, much less the high-flying Vinsanity of yesteryear."
But Carter still brings a lot to a team. On the court, he has shown flashes of brilliance (Mullinax noted that it was usually against the San Antonio Spurs). In the locker room, Carter is described as a "tremendous leader and a borderline player coach who surely inspires respect and admiration from his fellow players as to how to do things 'the right way' as you age."
He definitely sounds like a good mentor for a young team, specifically the LA Lakers. The Memphis Grizzlies are building themselves as a contender and they are definitely in win-now mode (since they spent so much in the offseason for Mike Conley and Chandler Parsons). Having a "tribute" roster spot for Carter is not something that would help in that end.
The Grizzlies have their own team needs as their bench is described as "thin, especially on the wing." Fortunately, the Lakers have wing players that the Grizzlies could find useful.
The Lakers have been looking for trade partners for Nick Young and even Lou Williams. While they could still contribute to the team, the issues between Young and star point guard D'Angelo Russell can't be ignored and the Lakers want to deal Williams to gain more cap flexibility.
The Lakers are looking for expiring contracts and Carter fits the bill. The team is not in a rush to win, as head coach Luke Walton mentioned in a podast with Shaquille O'Neal (h/t Silver Screen and Roll).
"The expectations, to me, aren't going to be wins and losses, right now at least. The expectations are going to be the way we play," said Walton. "It's about having an edge when you play, it's about competing every single time on offense and defense, it's about playing the right way."
Vince Carter sounds like a match. Cultivating the right culture seems more important to the team which is the correct approach for the long term. Carter is an icon to the Lakers young core and they could learn a lot from him.
