The Magic found their Udonis Haslem

Jevon Carter is the veteran voice this locker room needed

After a second half rout of the Washington Wizards, I asked Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane about Jevon Carter's immediate impact on the court and how quickly his veteran leadership and voice in the locker room has resonated with this team.

Paolo raved, 'he’s a natural leader, floor general… when he speaks, you got to listen."

Bane respected his path, "when you work hard and the only thing on your mind is winning, hard not to respect."

He has been great, man.

He is a guy I got to hang out with a little bit since he has been on the team, just get to know him.

I actually watched him a lot in college and told him that, when he was at West Virginia, he was a hell of a college player. One of the best guards I know in the Big 12.

And, so, having him on the team has been a great thing for us. Like you said, accountable piece – he's a natural leader, natural floor general type of guy.

He's been through a lot in the league, in a lot of different places, a lot of different great players he's played with, so he knows what it looks like. He's been on Finals teams and stuff like that.

He is a guy that, when he speaks, you got to listen to. He is not afraid to tell a guy what he is doing wrong. At the same time, he lets you know when you are doing good, doing stuff right.

And then on top of that, when he is out there, he makes an impact on both sides of the ball. Really can not say enough about him so far and glad he is on our team.Paolo Banchero

Yeah, I do not think it took long (for Jevon's voice to resonate with this team)

Just his body of work; he has been in the league for awhile, he has been on a bunch of different teams, seeing what it looks like to win.

And he is a hard worker, cares about winning.

When you work hard and the only thing on your mind is winning, it is hard not to respect people like that.

So, I think he has come in and given us exactly what we needed.Desmond Bane

Proven veteran voices in the locker room can provide leadership in ways that others can not.

Players can say things and do things that coaches and execs can not, so having a player who can act as an assistant coach in the locker room helps reaffirm the message, the goal, and the vertical integration between coaches, players, front office, and the entire team being on the same page.

Udonis Haslem is a classic example, though of course his journey started and ended in one city, carving out a storied 3-ring career with the Miami Heat as an enforcer, a tough defensive-minded classic power forward with a midrange jumper.

In his later years with the team, Haslem's voice in the locker room became just as valuable to Head Coach Eric Spoelstra's Heat Culture as his impact on the court, if not eventually surpassing that impact in value, simply by having a proven veteran voice who knows what he's talking about, has been there before, and has gotten the job done, who is able to show the next wave of players the way.

NBA teams signings vets to round out the roster has lost its favor, as the league trends younger and younger as front offices sell fans on prospects with potential.

What some teams forget is that proven vets who have been there and done that often will contribute to winning with more of a team-first style of play than most teenagers, and generally speaking, learning from the winning habits of established masters of their craft is one of the only ways for these young prospects to actually reach their full potential.

Balancing the locker room with prospects allowed to make mistakes, rising stars stacking days, and veteran voices who say the things everyone needs to hear but no one else can say can help keep everyone on the same page.