Vince Carter reiterates he won't chase rings
As Vince Carter prepares to enter his 21st NBA season with another new team, he was asked what appealed to him about the low-ceiling Atlanta Hawks over the possibility of ending his career with a championship contender.
Carter reiterated that he doesn't chase rings.
"I come from an era where that's not how it was," Carter said on a conference call Thursday for the Jr. NBA World Championships. "So that's still instilled in me. And I don't have any problem with how it's done now. I still want to play the game. Whatever minutes are there, I want."
His comments echoed what he told theScore last December, when he was a member of the Sacramento Kings.
"I'm just not ready for that," Carter said at the time. "When I step on the floor I just want to help my team and make those guys better. I mean it's easy to sit on the side and yell out coverages or help a young guy, but it's another thing showing them."
Related: Carter says DeRozan has 'unbelievable opportunity' with Spurs
Perhaps mostly for sentimental reasons, Carter has been linked over the past few years with the Toronto Raptors, the team he debuted with in 1998 and where he enjoyed the best seasons of his career.
When asked if he would play another season after 2018-19 with a contender, he said, "I think before that happens I'll probably retire anyway."
Carter turns 42 in January, and is the oldest current player in the NBA.