Kyrie Irving is in the prime of his NBA career. The 26-year-old point guard for the Boston Celtics is a legitimate superstar, and while he’s gotten off to a relatively slow start to the 2018-19 season (as have everyone on the Celtics), Irving is still averaging 22.4 points a night with career marks in assists (6.4) and rebounds (4.9) per game.
As long as he’s able to stay healthy, Irving is someone who can have a long and productive NBA career. How long that career goes, though, is anyone’s guess, but if there’s one thing Irving knows, it’s that it’s not going to go on for a terribly long time.
Irving spoke to the media on Friday prior to the Celtics’ game against the Atlanta Hawks. Because the Hawks are involved, Irving was asked about Vince Carter, who scored his 25,000th career point in the team’s last game. When asked if he can see himself having Carter-esque longevity, Irving revealed that he has no intention of sticking around for that long.
After marveling at Vince Carter's longevity this morning, Kyrie Irving was asked if he could envision himself playing that long.
"No, no," he said. "Once I’m done with this, hopefully in my early-to-mid 30s, I’m done with this."
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) November 23, 2018
There’s so much that can happen between now and the time Irving is in his mid-30s. He’s also been in the NBA since he was 19, so if he plays until his mid-30, he’ll have spent more than enough time in the league to justify hanging them up. The good news is that, despite his prediction that his career won’t drag on the way Carter’s has, Irving isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
