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Vince Carter addresses participating in another dunk contest

Jason Rowan
| December 5, 2018

Vince Carter is nearing 42 years old and in the midst of his 23rd NBA season, yet people are still clamoring for him to participate in another dunk contest.

The notion that Carter remains in-demand for the NBA’s annual dunking showcase during All-Star Weekend is in and of itself a testament to his greatness. That said, the current Atlanta Hawk recently laid out why he repeatedly declined to participate in another dunk contest after his legendary 2000 performance and why he most certainly will not participate in the one at the 2019 NBA All-Star Game in Charlotte, N.C.

“We all go back and talk about the dunk contest from 2000 and what it did for people and where you were and all of that, and I know what it did for me,” Carter said during a recent appearance on The Ringer’s “Winging It” podcast, as transcribed by Sportsnet. “So I feel like to taint it, 18-19 years later, why?

“If I step on the court for someone to see a dunk, the first thing you’re going to think about is 2000,” he added. “And you’re gonna compare that to 18-19 years later. And that’s just too much time in between … What it did for me then, I don’t ever want to tarnish it. And I feel like going out there, I’m just trying to relive something that should be left alone. Just like when we think some of our classic movies, like let’s not reboot or remake, it’s a classic leave it alone.

“(In 2000) it didn’t matter, I could dunk fresh off the bus, fresh off the plane. Now, not so much.”

Carter obviously is not the player he once was, but still is contributing to a developing Hawks team. Averaging 6.6 points, 0.9 assists and 2.3 rebounds in 17.5 minutes of action per game, Carter even scored his 25,000th career point last month in fitting fashion.

A dunk, of course.