The eight-time All-Star played for the first time with. To stay in the NBA, you have to prove that you're one of the best players in the world and that you're up to the league's standards. Throughout the history of the league, there have been several important prospects that fell short and didn't even last 10 years in the NBA. Getting to the NBA is very difficult, because you have to be very talented, work hard and, in addition, be lucky, even if some people say that luck doesn't exist. He always adapted to his role and fulfilled, and that's why he stayed in the NBA for 20 years despite being an average player at best.
The longest-serving player in the NBA is Vince Carter, who played 22 seasons on eight teams: the Toronto Raptors, the New Jersey Nets, the Orlando Magic, the Phoenix Suns, the Dallas Mavericks, the Memphis Grizzlies, the Sacramento Kings and the Atlanta Hawks. In such a vertiginous and physically challenging game, not many are able to endure two decades in the NBA, as this sport seriously affects an athlete's body. The Cleveland Cavaliers selected Jamal Crawford in the first round of the 2000 NBA Draft, but on the same day of the draft, he was traded to the Chicago Bulls, where he played its first four seasons. Throughout NBA history, there have been more than 4,500 players and the average career length is about 4.5 years.
NBA Hall of Famer Robert Parish made his debut in the 1976-77 season with the Golden State Warriors, then played 14 seasons with the Boston Celtics, winning three rings. Being first in the overall draft comes with a lot of pressure and, unfortunately for these NBA players, it was just too difficult to handle. Speaking of NBA legends, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar also played 20 seasons, 14 with the Los Angeles Lakers and six with the Milwaukee Bucks. The three-time sixth NBA player played his last three seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Phoenix Suns and Brooklyn Nets.
After the “21 Club”, we have four other great basketball players who played for 20 seasons: Los Angeles Lakers legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and the late Kobe Bryant, Jamal Crawford, three-time winner of the NBA's sixth man of the year award, and Udonis Haslem, of the Miami Heat. Haslem was never an outstanding player, but in his prime he was a decent power forward, and then he was a solid bench player in the second half of his career. The eight-time All-Star first played with the Toronto Raptors in 1998 and was named NBA Rookie of the Year in 1999.
