Vince Carter leaves door open to playing past this season

Back in April, Vince Carter said he was "almost 90 percent sure" that this coming NBA season would be his last. However, when he was introduced as the newest member of the Atlanta Hawks on Friday, he left the door open to playing past 2018-19.

"Every year, I gauge it at how I feel at the end of the year," the 41-year-old said, per The Athletic's Chris Kirschner. "The problem is I feel pretty darn good at the end of every year."

Related: A tale of 2 careers - How Vince Carter forged his own path into NBA lore

This coming season, Carter and Dirk Nowitzki will join Robert Parish, Kevin Garnett, and Kevin Willis as the only players in NBA history to play 21 seasons, and would set the all-time mark if either returns for 2019-20.

Carter, a former Slam Dunk contest champion and an eight-time All-Star, has largely been content to join rebuilding teams over the past three seasons, and the Hawks could be one of the league's worst squads this coming year. On that topic, Carter reiterated again Friday that he won't sacrifice minutes and leadership opportunities to chase rings.

"To just sit on the end of the bench? I can't do that," he said. “That's not who I am. I’ve been around long enough to know what's been ingrained in me and what's been instilled in me. It's just not my thing. The opportunity here is to play and help a young group of guys and head them in the right direction."