UNC in the NBA: Vince Carter hopes to play 1 to 2 more seasons
Nearly two decades into his professional career, and Vince Carter isn’t done yet
The average career for a professional basketball player in the NBA lasts less than five years. Most players never make it into their late-thirties, let alone age 40.
But don’t bother sharing those statistics with Vince Carter.
The eight-time All-Star, affectionately known by monikers such as “Vinsanity” and “Air Canada”, is one of just two players in the league that came out of the 1998 NBA Draft. The other is Dallas Mavericks power forward and future Hall-of-Famer Dirk Nowitzki.
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Nowitzki recently joined the elite 30,000-point club and Carter needs just 445 points to notch 25,000 points for his career. Carter is also tied for fifth-place in NBA history for made three-pointers with 2,049.
Yeah, you read that correctly. The player who made a name for himself in the NBA on the heels of incredible athleticism and high-flying dunks is also one of the greatest three-point shooters in the history of the game.
And it’s not just his play on the court that has been so significant over the last two decades.
Carter has been credited by many as being the reason for an entire generation of profession basketball players from Canada. He’s been lauded for reinventing the NBA’s Slam Dunk Competition and blamed for ruining it. And every basketball fan on the planet is aware of his incredible dunk over 7-foot-2 French center Frederic Weis in the 2000 Olympic Games.
And 19 years after entering the league, Carter wants to continue playing at the sport’s highest level for just a little bit longer.
"“I still think I can play and compete and play at a high level,” Carter told the Orlando Sentinel. “So I’m going to go for it. Free agency just started, so I’m just kind of weighing options and seeing what teams have to say.”MEMPHIS, TN – APRIL 22: Vince Carter"
Carter is an unrestricted free agent, but plans to give the Memphis Grizzlies an opportunity to bring him back for the 2017-18 season. He has, however, not ruled out the possibility of joining other teams including the Orlando Magic and the Golden State Warriors.
Carter’s comments about potentially joining the Warriors got a lot of publicity last week, noting that he would like to win a championship before retiring.
He’s also made it clear that he does not want to ride the coat tails of a winner on his way to an NBA Finals ring, but help a contender get over the hump by providing three-point shooting, solid defense and energy off the bench.
Carter still feels like he has a lot to offer the NBA and wherever he ends up next season, he plans on being a contributor.
He averaged eight points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists for the Grizzlies last season.