12 Players the Raptors never should have gambled on
By Tyler Watts
3. Alonzo Mourning
The Raptors traded Vince Carter to the then-New Jersey Nets in 2004. In return, they got two first-round draft picks, two bench players, and a future Hall of Famer. Mourning was a seven-time All-Star and one of the most dominant big men in the league before missing the 2002-03 season with kidney disease. He only played 12 games the following season, but there was still hope the 34-year-old would be an impactful option.
Mourning wanted out of New Jersey, but he was unwilling to come to Toronto. The two-time Defensive Player of the Year did not play one second for the Raptors. Toronto tried for two months before eventually waiving him. He returned to the Miami Heat and helped them win the championship in 2006.
The Raptors got fleeced in the Vince Carter trade. They gave up one of the league’s best players, and Alonzo Mourning refusing to report made it worse. The return shrunk to two bench players and two first-round picks. Yes, Vinsanity wanted out, and Toronto had to trade him, but Mourning made the return even more disappointing and quickly became a villain to Raptors fans.
It was not the first time the Toronto Raptors gambled on an aging center only to be filled with regret.