Vince Carter was among 13 people inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame on Sunday, the final mark for the player they once called “half man, half great.” As part of his 22-year career, Carter spent three seasons with the Dallas Mavericks after winning a championship with them in 2011.
At Saturday’s Hall of Fame press conference, Carter was asked the secret to having such a long career. And he gave a very simple answer.
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“I would like to,” Carter replied. He further explained: “Willingness. Do whatever it takes to last…I was going to stick to the script even when I was 42, 43 years old…I would get there early. I would stay there late after practice. I would…” I did what was necessary and I was going to do whatever it took to last this long… Those sacrifices were easy because of what I wanted to accomplish. ”
Carter is one of eight former Mavericks to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, but he ranks in the top half of those in games played in Dallas. He joins Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, Steve Nash, Adrian Dantley, Alex English, Tim Hardaway Sr., and Dennis Rodman in the HOF. Dantley, English, Hardaway, and Rodman all played less than a full season’s worth of games in Dallas. Former coach and general manager Don Nelson is also a Hall of Famer.
Most people will remember Vince Carter’s time with the Toronto Raptors and New Jersey Nets, but one of his biggest shots was as a Dallas Maverick in Game 3 of the first round of the 2014 playoffs. He used to hit a three in the corner against Manu Ginobili. They defeated the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs.
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