Vince Carter wins NBA Sportsmanship Award
(FILES) Vince Carter of the Atlanta Hawks reacts in the second half against the Memphis Grizzlies at State Farm Arena on March 2, 2020 in Atlanta, Georgia. Vince Carter, who retired in June after a 22-season NBA career, was named October 1, 2020, as the 2019-20 NBA Sportsmanship Award winner. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP)
Vince Carter is still collecting hardware from the NBA, even after announcing his retirement in June.
Carter, 43, was named as the recipient of the 2019-20 NBA Sportsmanship Award on Thursday. The award is designed to honor a player who best represents the ideals of sportsmanship on the court.
Article continues after this advertisementNow an analyst, Carter received 143 first-place votes and 2,520 points in voting by NBA players. Brooklyn’s Garrett Temple (1,746) and Oklahoma City’s Steven Adams (1,632) finished second and third in the voting.
Sacramento’s Harrison Barnes (1,418), Detroit’s Langston Galloway (1,244) and Memphis’ Tyus Jones (1,016) were also finalists for the award.
The six finalists were awarded 11 points for each first-place vote, nine for each second-place vote, seven for each third-place vote, five for each fourth-place vote, three for each fifth-place vote and one for each sixth-place vote.
Article continues after this advertisementMemphis’ Mike Conley was last year’s winner.
Carter was the No. 5 overall pick in the 1998 NBA Draft and played his first six-plus seasons with the Toronto Raptors, winning the Rookie of the Year award in 1999 and the NBA Dunk Contest in 2000. He made eight consecutive All-Star teams (2000-07).
The Atlanta Hawks were the final stop of Carter’s 22-season journey, as he spent the past two campaigns as a veteran presence on a young team. He also played with the then-New Jersey Nets (2004-09), Orlando Magic (2009-10), Phoenix Suns (2010-11), Dallas Mavericks (2011-14), Grizzlies (2014-17) and Kings (2017-18).
Carter averaged more than 20 points per game in 10 seasons, with a career high of 27.6 in 2000-01.
He retired with career averages of 16.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. Field Level Media
