Fun moment after the NBC panel spent a lot of time — fairly and sternly — criticizing Victor Wembanyama’s play tonight.
Maria Taylor lightened the mood by asking Carmelo Anthony, Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady what it felt like in their first postseason trips:
💬 “Y’all remember what it felt like? Were we extra tired? Did we feel like Wemby.”
Carter started:
💬 “We got swept … My first one, I was tired after the first game.”
McGrady next:
💬 “I was a bench player.”
Then Anthony:
💬 “At 22, I think I won one game.”
For the record, Carter (23) and McGrady (20) were both on the Raptors in 2000, when they were swept by the Knicks in Round 1. Carter averaged 19.3 points on 15-of-50 from the field. McGrady scored 16.7 points but shot 39 percent from the field.
Anthony was 19 when the Nuggets lost to Minnesota in five games in his rookie season. He averaged just 15 points per game on 33 percent shooting.
When McGrady was 22, he averaged 30.8 points per game in a four-game first-round series loss to Charlotte.
When Anthony was 22, he averaged 26.8 points per game in a five-game first-round series loss to San Antonio.
Anyway, Taylor’s point was taken.
