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(NBA) A legend from 1990s is still going strong

Posted January. 06, 2020 07:44,   

Updated January. 06, 2020 07:44

한국어

Vince Carter (Atlanta, 198 cm), 43, became the first basketball player who plays in the National Basketball Association (NBA) in four separate decades.

On Sunday, when Carter took the first floor to play against Indiana 6 minutes and 30 seconds before the end of the first quarter, Atlanta fans gave him a standing ovation. Having debuted in the 1998-99 season, he became the first basketball player whose NBA career spans four different decades. The Atlanta Hawks had its first game of the year on the previous day but without Carter. He was selected as the fifth overall pick in the 1998 NBA draft by the Golden State Warriors who traded him to the Toronto Raptors before he won the Rookie of the Year award.

Carter is most recognized for his dunks as his nickname “Air Canada” suggests. His sensational dunking ability even made the NBA revive the slam dunk contest that ended two years before the 2000 All-Star Game, to showcase his dunks to the nation. He also made news when he dunked on Frederic Weis, a French basketball player who is 218 centimeters tall at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

These astonishing skills may be gone with age, but Carter is more seasoned than ever before, which makes him attractive to young teams like Atlanta. Four players in his team were not even born yet when he was selected in the 1998 NBA draft. Carter became the first NBA player with 22 seasons after agreeing to a one-year deal to return to the Atlanta Hawks during the last offseason.


Kyu-In Hwang kini@donga.com