"Anytime the Clippers talked to the Nets about Vince Carter, they refused to put Shaun Livingston in play."
- Mitch Lawrence
"Nets president Rod Thorn didn't respond to Orlando GM Otis Smith saying that trading Darko Milicic, 21, for Vince Carter, 30, would've been "fool's gold." "It shines and it glitters, but it just doesn't stick or pass the test," Smith told Florida Today.
While it's true that Orlando wasn't going to part with Milicic, Smith actually was "pretty active" in his pursuit of Carter, said a person with knowledge of the discussions. But with Carter able to opt out of his contract after the season, Orlando was only interested in giving up expiring contracts."
- Ken Berger