He sidestepped Thompson’s question about whether he asked for a trade, but it was an indirect “yes.” Claiming he was an innocent bystander in the trade ignores the whole reality of the NBA, even 16 years ago, that star players have ample leverage within organizations. That went for Carter in Toronto, too. The Raptors catered to extensively to him as his stardom rose. “You start kind of giving into ideas,” said Richard Peddie, the former Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment chief executive officer and Raptors president. “You give his mom a parking spot. (No players on the Maple Leafs or Raptors) had spouses who had parking spots. You give him his own security guard. … I used to joke he was in the fan-prevention department, because (Vince) wasn’t good in public. And then you let him go to his graduation, which I wasn’t a fan of. You’re giving into this guy, and it’s not good for Vince, either. It really isn’t. You don’t do that stuff.”