Rankings the best NBA nicknames of all time

12. Half-Man, Half-Amazing

Still cocking the ball and rocking rims at 41 years old as a member of the Sacramento Kings, Vince Carter was the man who revitalized the Slam Dunk Contest at NBA’s All-Star Weekend with his awe-inspiring performance to win it in 2000. The first true star of the Toronto Raptors franchise, Carter also earned the names Vinsanity and Air Canada for his insane array of bedazzling dunks and sensational playmaking ability. He helped usher the NBA into a post-Michael Jordan era, easing the pain of his retirement by sharing many of the qualities his fellow Tar Heel possessed.

Though the dunks he performed in the contest were all beyond the realm of reasonable comprehension, as if devised in a computer program for the simple digital consumption of a bored scientist, they all paled in comparison to what Carter did as a member of the gold-medal winning U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team. In a group stage game against France, Carter stole a pass, sized up the 7’2” Fredreic Weis and jumped all the way the hell over him. It’s mesmerizing to watch.

Even now, living in a world in which Giannis posterized Tim Hardaway Jr. in the same fashion, it felt just a bit empty. Hardaway’s frame is not Weis’, after all. It takes somebody semi-divine to pull off what Carter did, and that dunk is perhaps the greatest ever. Then again, as a veteran looking to continue playing beyond this season, Carter is open to continuing to shock and surprise us. If he keeps this up, he’ll simply be No-Man, All-Amazing.