Eventually they will force you to update or apps will refuse to function. At least that's what happens with YouTube. It will display a prompt that you can't dismiss. Most other Google apps are fine, Maps, Drive, Keep, Docs do not seem to care I have a 2 year old version.
I'm likely in the minority but I've been an Android user for years, and took full advantage of that freedom. But with the way things continue to go I've started trying to become less dependent on Android and Google's services because I just can't trust them anymore. I see malicious intent and that kind of feels like I'm getting trapped. I download my daily YouTube subscriptions and watch them offline now on a dedicated video player, same with my music, audiobooks, regular books, etc. I backup my photos to a hard drive (still use Google Photos, just empty it once full), I store my essentials on a physical drive in *addition* to Google Drive, stuff like that. I will always be an Android user but I think I'll treat it more like an "internet machine" / computer than my everyday all-in-one device