Al Harrington just turned 33 last month, but having been drafted out of high school back in 1998, the Magic forward is already in his 15th NBA season. If Harrington has his way and if his body holds up, he'd like to become a 20-year NBA veteran, playing for five more seasons, as he tells Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida (Twitter link). The comment echoes one he made back in December to Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel.
Earlier this season, one report suggested that health and injury problems could keep Harrington sidelined for the entire season, with retirement also a possibility. Harrington quickly denied that he was considering retiring, and eventually worked his way back to the court, making his Orlando debut last Tuesday night.
Although health issues have prevented Harrington from making an impact on the court this season, he showed last year with the Nuggets that he still has the ability to be a solid contributor to an NBA team. In 64 contests with Denver, the 6'9" forward averaged 14.2 PPG and 5.0 RPG in 27.5 minutes per contest.
Harrington's current contract runs for two more seasons beyond 2012/13, though it's possible that he'll be released before it expires. Next season and 2014/15 are both 50% guaranteed, so if the Magic or another team were to waive Harrington this summer, they'd only be on the hook for half of the $14.76MM remaining on his deal.