The players who have played for the longest NBA, all of which have been in more than 21 seasons, and James is expected to set a new record

As we all know, the career life of athletes is very limited, especially for basketball and football, which require constant confrontation on the court. It is already quite difficult for most athletes to play professional leagues for 10 seasons. In the NBA, most players basically play until they are 30 years old and it is almost time to leave the league, but with the development of technology, it has to be said that the careers of athletes nowadays have generally become longer. The next six players we included broke people's perception of basketball players through their careers. They played at least 21 seasons in the NBA. When they retired, some players in the league were less than their time to play in the NBA!

6. Kevin Willis (21 seasons)

Average of 12.1 points and 8.4 rebounds in his career

In 1984, Willis was selected by the Hawks with the 11th pick in the first round. He stayed here for almost 11 seasons. During this period, he also grew from a rookie who averaged only 9.3 points and 6.4 rebounds per game to an All-Star player who averaged only two-double per game all year round. Willis, 29, averaged 18.3 points, 15.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists in the regular season in 1991-1992. He was not only selected as the All-Star, but also selected as the only best team in his career.

Willis was traded to the Heat in the 1994-1995 season, and then he played for the Warriors, Rockets, Raptors, Nuggets and other teams. During this period, his best performance was when he was still playing with the Rockets in the 1997-1998 season. That year, he averaged 16.1 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1 assist in the regular season. Since then, his decline has become more and more obvious. At the end of his career, Willis joined the Spurs. He averaged 2.6 points and 1.7 rebounds per game in the 2003 playoffs. He then followed the team to win the championship. Later, Willis was not completely retired until he was 44 years old.

5. Robert Palish (21 seasons)

Average of 14.5 points, 9.1 rebounds, 1.4 assists in his career

In 1976, Palish was selected by the Warriors with the 8th pick in the first round. He averaged 9.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1 assist and 1.2 blocks in his rookie season, and he soon ushered in evolution. So we can see that Palish is getting better and better. In the 1978-1979 season, he also averaged 17.2 points, 12.1 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.3 steals and 2.9 blocks per game.

Palish transferred to the Celtics in 1980, where he also ushered in his true peak. In his first year of joining the Celtics, he was selected as the All-Star with an average of 18.9 points, 9.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1 steal and 2.6 blocks per game. Later, when the Celtics were playing, Palish was selected into the All-Star 9 times and was selected into the All-Series 2 times. With Palish's help, the Celtics have won three championships, and his best performance in the playoffs was in 1984, when he averaged 14.9 points, 10.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1 steal and 1.8 blocks per game.

In the later period, Palish played for the Hornets and Bulls again. In the last season, he also won another championship with the Bulls, and thus he successfully ended his career.

4. Kevin Garnett (21 seasons)

Average of 17.8 points, 10 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.4 blocks in his career, Garnett, who entered the NBA after graduating from high school, has gained the trust of the Timberwolves from the beginning. The team not only selected him in the fifth pick in the first round, but also quickly established the team building concept with him as the core. Under the training of the Timberwolves, Garnett quickly realized his talent after entering the NBA, so he was gradually selected as the All-Star, Best Defensive Team, and Best Team.

Garnett averaged 24.2 points, 13.9 rebounds, 5 assists, 1.5 steals and 2.2 blocks in the regular season. Under his leadership, the Timberwolves also achieved the first place in the Western Conference, and in the end he was successfully elected as the MVP. Unfortunately, due to his delay in winning the championship, Garnett transferred to the Celtics in 2007, and he won the championship in his first season here. If it weren't for his cruciate ligament injury the following year and his season was reimbursed, the Celtics would have hoped to defend their title.

In this way, Garnett played at the Celtics to a level no longer an All-Star. At the end of his career, he was lucky to return to the Timberwolves. After playing the 2015-2016 season, he ended his career.

3.Dek Nowitzki (21 seasons)

Average of 20.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists in his career, the Mavericks have been fond of Nowitzki from the beginning, so they reached a deal with the Bucks in the 1998 draft and got the latter. His performance in the league afterwards obviously did not disappoint the Mavericks. Nowitzki at his peak was one of the best players in the league. Under his leadership, the Mavericks have been among the strong teams all year round. He personally won the only MVP in his career in 2007. After 30 years old, Nowitzki still maintained a very good form at the beginning, and in 2011 he led the Mavericks to win the championship. That year, 32-year-old Nowitzki, averaging 27.7 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game, and he was also the most confident player at critical moments. He was able to defeat the Heat in the Finals that year because of his unique final performance. Later Nowitzki played until the 2018-2019 season. At the age of 40, he averaged 7.3 points and 3.1 rebounds that year. In the end, he realized his wish of one person and one city..

2. Vince Carter (22 seasons)

Average of 16.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1 steal in his career. At his peak, Carter was one of the four major points guards in the league. He had been selected as the All-Star many times at that time and was even elected as the All-Star vote leader. In the 2000-2001 season, Carter was selected into the All-A-Second Team with his average of 27.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.1 blocks per game, but it has to be said that his personal achievements are not comparable to those of the other three point guards, and he has never broken through the division finals in the playoffs. At the end of his career, Carter changed teams a lot in order to stay in the NBA, and he was unwilling to join any strong teams that he didn't need to play. In the end, the Kings and Hawks he joined were all bad teams. The advantage of this is that Carter can get real opportunities to play, so the 42-year-old Carter averaged 5 points and 2.1 rebounds per game.

1. LeBron James (22 seasons)

Average of 27 points, 7.5 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 1.5 steals in his career

James, who entered the league after graduating from high school in 2003, can be said to have truly achieved the goal from the 2G era to the 5G era. Young players such as Wenban Yama in the league have not been born in 2003. What makes James different from the above stars is that he is still one of the best stars in the league at this stage of his career. At the age of 40 this season, he is still selected for the All-A Second Team.

In addition, although it has not been officially announced yet, it is basically a foregone conclusion that James and the Lakers renew their contract, so his career is likely to usher in his 23rd season, which will also set a new record again. In fact, with James' decline speed, as long as he is willing, playing in the NBA for a full 25 seasons is not a dream for him. Even at that time, he averaged double points per game, it should still be a matter of holding hands.