I don't think it's too late to buy an altcoin like Cardano, because this altcoin has improved and has gone through tough times since 2017, and I think now is the time for Cardano to rise, if you want to invest in the long term then Cardano is a very good choice according to Me, because the capitalisi and potential is very high at this time, so there is a great chance to be able to go up the 100x in the next 3 to 4 years,
It is never too late if you are investor who have long term plan. If you decide to invest in Cardano and will hold it more than 4 years. If you think you can wait for the next bull run of Bitcoin, 2025. If you think you have enough money and won't have to sell your Cardano to use for anything. Yes, you can buy and invest in Cardano today, in this year.
But if you only want to invest in Cardano and think it will rise more in this year or a few more months in 2022, you should not invest in Cardano. If it won't grow more, you will have to close your investment with lose.
Actually, there's no late in an investment if you think it has huge potentials that can be more valuable in the coming years. Cardano has an advantage if you take it for long term investment, but when it comes for short term, the risk might be higher because there is no such guarantees that it will increase its price rapidly. I can see Cardano, which is more energy-efficient, a good coin that will mostly be profitable in long term. Although its demand is not as huge as bitcoin and ethereum, but seeing it has a faster transaction and a less energy usage, then maybe in the next years it might be a close competitor for bitcoin and ethereum.