Vince Carter will be turning 40 years old this season and he will be the oldest active NBA player. (Photo : Getty Images/Harry How)
"Father Time" is creeping up in most of the NBA players fans grew up with. Two NBA greats in Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan have retired last season while Paul Pierce and Dirk Nowitzki have expressed their desire to retire after this season. Aside from these four would be Hall of Famers, who are the oldest players in their respective NBA teams?
In the NBA, there are four 39-year-old ballers, namely, Grizzlies' Vince Carter, Clippers' Paul Pierce, Spurs' Manu Ginobili and Bucks' Jason Terry, as reported by Fox Sports
Carter will be turning 40 this season but he is still a pivotal part of the Memphis rotation averaging 25.7 minutes per game. Unlike Carter, Pierce, who will go down as one of Boston Celtics' greats, is merely seeing action with a career-low 11.6 minutes. Ginobili and Terry are still a critical piece of their respective teams' rotation but it is undeniable that they are having problems matching up with younger guys.
Next in line are NBA vets Chris Andersen of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Mavericks' Nowitzki, who are both 38 years old. Andersen is looking to end his career with the title contender Cavaliers while Nowitzki's Mavs are last in the Western Conference playoff race.
With Bryant's retirement, Metta World Peace is the oldest Laker at 37 years old. Though he saw a dip in playing time, the Lakers might have taken him to be a mentor to their young core of players.
Nets' Luis Scola, Nuggets' Mike Miller, Warriors' David West, Heat's Udonis Haslem, Thunder's Nick Collison and Kings' Matt Barnes are the most senior in their respective squads at 36 years old. Scola and Miller are playing for two of the worst teams in the NBA while West, Haslem and Collison are hoping for another run in the playoffs before they hang up their jerseys.
At 35 years old, former teammates Joe Johnson and Kyle Korver are the oldest players for the Jazz and the Hawks, respectively. Korver is already in his 13th NBA season but still has not lost his touch as a marksman while Johnson is still punishing his opponents with his iso-heavy plays.
Suns' Tyson Chandler, Bulls' Dwayne Wade, Timberwolves' John Lucas III, Rockets' Nene and Pistons' Beno Udrih are the oldest in their squads at 34 years old. Chandler racked up back-to-back 20-rebound games recently while Wade is still being used heavily at 31.7 minutes a game. Nene and Udrih are averaging below 20 minutes a game while Lucas is barely getting any minutes with a stacked guard lineup for the TWolves.
At 32 years old, Knicks' Sasha Vujacic, Magic's CJ Watson and Wizards' Marcin Gortat are the oldest in their teams. They are followed by Hornets' Brian Roberts and Pacers' Al Jefferson who are 31-year-olds.
76ers' Sergio Rodriguez, Raptors' Kyle Lowry, Celtics' Gerald Green and Pelicans' Omer Asik can still compete at a high level at 30 years old. The youngest in the list is Blazers' Evan Turner who is still 28 years old.
All statistics are acquired from ESPN.com.
