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ball junkie · March 24, 2007

Here's a run down of a very exciting evening not only for me but all Magic fans.

First off I mounted my Bhnole "Come Home Vince" poster on a large cardboard approximately 2ft. by 3ft. As I approached Amway Arena I carried the poster facing the crowd right in front of my body so as anyone that passed would get a perfect view of Bhnole's incredicle artistry.(lol)

I could hardly walk anywhere without someone saying, "man, where did you get that poster? That is awesome"!

When arriving inside with my young son in tow we quickly proceeded to our seats which are very near the visiting team's bench. The players were warming up for pre-game so I wanted to try and get Vince's attention as soon as I could. I walked around the floor of the court until I made my way to the side of the floor the Nets were warming up on. David Steele(Magic TV announcer) stopped me to say hi and admire my artwork. I told him to make sure and put in a plug for Vince during the game. Did he do that guys?

Anyway, Vince was just about to come within 10 feet of where I was standing when a security guard told me I would have to move. You guys know I don't like cussing but that was one time I almost did.(lol) Also Rafael, if you saw me with the poster why didn't you speak to me?

Next, I went back to my seat hoping that when the Nets came back to their bench I could get Vince's attention then. As the Nets team approached I began yelling for Carter to look. I was being out-shouted by the roar of the crowd. Some man began yelling at me from the aisle. I turned to see what the problem was and to my stunning disbelief it was "Knappy"!

That's right Magic fans, there was a "Knappy" sighting at the game last night!

I held up my poster for Knappy to see. A huge smile developed on my friends face. Knappy said, "did you get Vince to see it"? I told him I'm trying. Just then Knappy let out this huge yell towards the Nets bench, "VINCE"!!!! Kind of like a guy would do if he was extremely fustrated with Brian Hill's coaching. Just kidding Knappy.(lol)

Right then Carter looked up and saw the poster. A huge smile came across his face. All of his Nets teammates were glancing over-an-over at my poster. Vince kept staring my way continually throughout the game. Everytime I made eye contact with him I raised my poster up. I could tell he genuinely loved it.

By the way, I saw thousands of people with my poster. Only one person all night said anything negative about getting Vince. Everyone else I saw wanted to buy one of their own. So you guys that don't want Vince are in a very small minority. Vince also got as loud an ovation during the intro for starting line-ups as the Magic players did. On the opposite side of the spectrum there was some obvious loud booing for Coach Hill.

Just a quick Knappy update since I know some of you have been wondering about him. He might be softening up a little. Especially after I told him my sources were telling me that whether we make the playoffs or not Brian would not be coaching this team next year. He said he was again "considering" re-upping for season tickets. I told him that the guys on the boards had been wondering about him and he said the fustration was killing him and he had to get away for awhile. By the way Knappy, that was a cute girl you introduced to me.

Finally, as I posted on a thread last night I have never in my many years of attending games seen a player from the visiting team be so friendly and sociable with Magic players. It was almost as if he was mentally playing with the Magic already.

Here is a just a quick snipet on a Carter article from the Sentinel this morning:

quote:

He(Vince) couldn't wait to leave that locker room, past the disappointment, sprinting into something more secure.

He found it a few feet away, in friends.

"He always comes back to us," said Charles Brinkerhoff, Carter's former high-school coach at Daytona Beach Mainland. "It's always a homecoming when he comes back home."

Brinkerhoff and about 15 others met Carter inside Amway Arena's corridor after the game. They hugged. They took pictures. Carter smiled. He didn't look dead anymore.

"It's a special occasion," Brinkerhoff said.

On a night when New Jersey slipped to ninth place in the Eastern Conference and out of playoff position, Carter didn't seem to care -- at least for the moment. He has plenty of ties to Central Florida, and those were on his mind. He still shooed away reporters, trying to preserve his private time. But the questions were still there.

He built a home in southwest Orlando, not far from where Grant Hill lives. It has caused some speculation that he might consider the Magic when he has the option to become a free agent after this summer.

"I love VC like a brother," New Jersey's Hassan Adams said. "We need him."

Yet on Friday, such topics were far from Carter's mind. He enjoyed the moment.

"It's just another example of him being loyal," Brinkerhoff said.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/local/orl-mside24...orl-sports-headlines

ball junkie · March 24, 2007