Former NBA player Gilbert Arenas believes that veteran swingman Vince Carter should be sitting on the bench as a coach or in the office rather than playing for the Atlanta Hawks.
Per Chris Kirschner of The Athletic, Arenas — who now plays in the BIG3 — laid out his arguments on why Carter should just take a coaching or front office role for a team instead of playing. For Arenas, Carter is only taking a roster spot on the team which should have been given to a young player who is looking to prove himself.
“Let’s be honest here,” Arenas said, “You have Vince, or you have this young guy. You’re going to choose Vince. He’s put 20 years in. His 5 percent is better than your 100 percent because his 5 percent is going to be smart basketball, so the coach is going to overlook young talent until they get that experience. When you’re the last guy on the bench or the guy who got cut, you look at someone like Vince and say, ‘Come on, dude.’
“There’s no upside for Vince. Let somebody else get in there and be the next Vince Carter.”
The three-time All-Star then claimed that his opinions on Carter are born out out of his own experience. To recall, Arenas was the 31st overall pick back in 2o01 and had to work harder than most players to get playing time, be noticed and leave an impression.
“Vince should be on the bench as a coach or in the office giving his input,” Arenas added. “That’s a roster spot. You have kids who are 27 in (the Big3) that should be in the NBA. Why are they not in the NBA? It’s not that I don’t like that he’s playing, it’s just that I had to fight from the beginning. You see a guy who is over the hill already and think, ‘I’m better than you.’ But the coach isn’t going to put me in, and you have no reason to still be playing. You’re not playing for anything, but in his mind, he’s playing for the title of most seasons played.”
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