40-year old Vince Carter dunks his way to King-sized upset over Warriors

Father Time is undefeated, but Sacramento Kings forward Vince Carter is giving him a run for his money. After Tuesday’s (Manila time, November 28)  performance, the 4-decade old veteran once again taunted in his face.

Carter only had 4 points in Sacramento’s improbable 110-106 victory over the defending champion Golden State Warriors, but both of his shots made the highlight reel.

Yes, that was a reverse layup and a tomahawk dunk from a man turning 41 years young in January. In the background, 19-year old Kings rookie De’Aaron Fox could be seen celebrating from the bench. He was 7 months old, unable to walk nor talk, when his teammate was drafted in 1998 by the Toronto Raptors.

25-year old rookie Bogdan Bogdanovic would later on seal the deal with a game-winning drive. Sacramento ended up winning just their 6th game in 20 tries and their first in Golden State since 2013. Sure, superstars Steph Curry and Kevin Durant didn’t play, but Sacramento is just 29th out of 30 in points per game, offensive rating and defensive rating, so let’s let them off for now.

Playing in his 19th season, Carter is pushing the borders of Vinsanity after signing a 1-year, $8 million deal with the Kings. He joins Zach Randolph and George Hill in a surprising infusion of veteran power to the struggling California franchise. Like Randolph and Hill, many eyebrows were raised after Carter signed with a rebuilding campaign despite not having a single NBA title yet in his illustrious career.

However, in an interview with NBC Sports, his reasoning was simple enough:

“Great opportunity for me. I always liked the state. At this point, it’s not really about the money, moreso than the opportunity. I still want to play in this league. I didn’t want to sit and collect a check and ride a wave of some championship team,” Carter told NBC Sports California’s Jim Kozimor and James Ham at Kings Media Day. “I’m just at a point where I just feel like I can contribute at a high level. And maybe down the line, maybe that option I’ll really embark on. Until then, I want to play, I want to contribute and still help the young guys get better and go through the ups and downs of this league, ’cause I’ve been there.”

Carter joins a staggering 9 players in the roster who are either just rookies or sophomores, including high-potential players like Fox and Bogdanovic.

Currently, he is averaging just 2.6 points, 1.3 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 12.6 minutes per game – all career-lows. But really, what matters at this point is what he said: “And maybe down the line, maybe that option (playing for contenders) I’ll really embark on.”

After nearly two decades, it appears that the 2000 Slam Dunk Champion isn’t ready to call it quits. He really is half-(old) man, half-amazing. – Rappler.com