Cameron Carter-Vickers was too short to follow his dad to the NBA but he is happy to be shooting for glory in some very different hoops.
His father Howard, nicknamed Hi-C, was a shooting guard with the Denver Nuggets and Dallas Mavericks in the 1980s. Carter-Vickers, who made the permanent £6million move to Celtic from Tottenham Hotspur this summer, is a fan of basketball but felt more at ease with the ball at his feet than in his hands.
The central defender, though, reckons having a dad who was a professional sportsman has helped him get where he is today, starring for Celtic and the USA. He said: “My mum and dad are pretty easy-going. They are all pleased for me. They are happy if I am happy.
“I didn’t grow up with my dad but I used to see him regularly in the summer. He didn’t play football, he played basketball but there are traits all pro athletes use and he has been able to help me with stuff like that. I play a little bit of basketball but I am probably a bit too short for it. He played in the NBA for a couple of years and also played in France and Greece. Neither him nor my mum put any pressure on me. If I do need advice then I know he is there.”
Carter-Vickers was brought up in England by his mum but it was his dad’s side who inspired him to take his international chance with the USA. He explained: “I spent a lot of summers out there as a kid and was always close to that side of my family. On my dad’s side I’ve got a few sisters and quite a few cousins.”
His parents were big influences on his career but coming through the ranks at Tottenham it was John McDermott who really helped drive CCV on. The former Spurs academy manager was responsible for bringing some top talent through, like Harry Kane, Harry Winks, Andros Townsend, Steven Caulker and Ryan Fredericks.
Carter-Vickers explained: “My mum and dad have always been there for me. I’d probably say the academy coach at Tottenham, John McDermott too. He’s not there any more but as I was coming through the youth teams at Tottenham he was the main guy there.
“He’s a very good coach. It wasn’t just on football, he just kind of helped people grow, as a footballer and a person. I think if you talk to a lot of the academy boys from Tottenham I think they’ll say the same thing. I still speak to him now and again. I think he’s involved with the FA now, so he’s busy. But we still speak now and again.”
The 24-year-old is starring in Hoops and it has seen his career go full circle as he started out at Catholic United before he went into the Spurs academy. Celtic sent Essex-based United a kit more than 50 years ago. The champions did the same when their famous old son signed at Parkhead.
Carter-Vickers insisted: “I’ve always been aware of Celtic. They are a massive club throughout the world so wherever you grow up you are aware of Celtic. I didn’t really know the links until I came up here. You see the similarities in the kit and stuff but I wasn’t aware that there was such a strong link.”
Stopper CCV advanced through the ranks at Spurs but spent the majority of his time out on loan. He had spells at Sheffield United, Ipswich Town, Swansea, Stoke City, Luton, Bournemouth and then Celtic last term.
It was in Glasgow where he really shone for Ange Postecoglou ’s double winners and had the season of his career. That was a major factor in him joining permanently. Carter-Vickers said: “There were a couple of times when I went on loan, came back in January and went back out. Maybe 35 matches I played.
“For me personally, I just want to play games. So to play as many games as I did, I enjoyed it. I was delighted with that last year. We worked hard all season and to eventually get to the league title was a good feeling.
“My medals are at my house in a little box. I’m leaving them there for now. I haven’t decided what I’m going to do with them yet.”
Last season is very much boxed off for Carter-Vickers and the Hoops squad. They are now looking at defending their domestic crown and going into the Champions League. They have brought their pre-season tour of Austria to an end and sign off in the Czech Republic tonight against Banik Ostrava.
Carter-Vickers admitted: “We’re all together day-to-day so it needs to be that way. Everybody needs to be pulling in the same direction and I think we’ve got a group that does that. That’s the aim. We don’t want to stand still.
“We want to improve on our performances from last year and try in every match to do a little bit better. We don’t set any targets in terms of what we want to achieve. It’s just about trying to get better every day and to improve performances.”
The trilogy of Joe Hart, Carl Starfelt and CCV provided the foundation for Celtic’s success last year. The fans’ favourite is in no doubt there is room for even more improvement.
He insisted: “You can always understand each other more. But I think if you look at the season, the more games we played together, I learned what Carl was going to do and he was the same with me. Defensively, that is important, it does help a lot.”
