James William Cartwright (born July 30, 1957) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player and a former head coach of the Chicago Bulls of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA). A 7'1" (2.16 m) center, he played 16 seasons for the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

, Chicago Bulls and Seattle SuperSonics, helping the Bulls capture consecutive championships in the

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

and

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

seasons. He attended Elk Grove High School in Elk Grove, California, and played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

at the

University of San Francisco The University of San Francisco (USF) is a private Jesuit university in San Francisco, California. The university's main campus is located on a setting between the Golden Gate Bridge and Golden Gate Park. The main campus is nicknamed "The Hil ...

Early life

James William Cartwright was born to James and Marie Cartwright on July 30, 1957 in Lodi, California. In high school, Cartwright played basketball for the Elk Grove Thundering Herd under coach Dan Risley. With Cartwright on the squad, the team went undefeated in the 1973-1974 season and was named the best high school basketball team in California in both 1974 and 1975. In 1975, Elk Grove won the NorCal Tournament of Champions. In 1974 and 1975, Cartwright was named California High School State Basketball Player of the Year. In 1975, he was named California High School Sports Athlete of the Year. As a prep star, Cartwright was just as highly regarded as fellow preps Darryl Dawkins and

Bill Willoughby William Wesley Willoughby (born May 20, 1957) is an American former professional basketball player born in Englewood, New Jersey. After graduating from Dwight Morrow High School in Englewood, he was selected by the Atlanta Hawks in the 1975 NBA dr ...

. Cartwright graduated from Elk Grove High School in 1975.

College basketball career

Cartwright played college basketball at the University of San Francisco and was a consensus second-team all-American in

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

and

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

. During his time at USF, Cartwright played on one of the tallest starting lineups in collegiate history. He graduated as the all-time leading scorer for the Dons, averaging 19.1

points Point or points may refer to: Places * Point, Lewis, a peninsula in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland * Point, Texas, a city in Rains County, Texas, United States * Point, the NE tip and a ferry terminal of Lismore, Inner Hebrides, Scotland * Point ...

and 10.2

rebounds 'Rebound' is a term used in sports to describe the ball (or puck or other object of play) becoming available for possession by either opponent after an attempt to put the ball or puck into the goal has been unsuccessful. Rebounds are generally ...

per game. Cartwright led San Francisco to three trips to the NCAA tournament, to the first round in the

and to the Sweet Sixteen in both

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...

and

Professional career

New York Knicks (1979–1988)

Cartwright was the third overall pick in the 1979 NBA draft selected by the

, making his only career All-Star Game appearance in his first season. He averaged more than 20 points per game in his first two seasons for the Knicks, but after playing no fewer than 77 games in his first five seasons, a series of foot injuries caused him to miss the entire 1984–1985 season. Following that season, the Knicks drafted center Patrick Ewing with the number-one overall pick in the

1985 NBA draft The 1985 NBA Draft took place on June 18, 1985. It was also the first NBA draft of the "lottery" era. It was also around this time where the league decreased the amount of rounds the draft spent, with the previous few years lasting up to 10 roun ...

. However, ongoing foot problems limited Cartwright to only two appearances during the 1985–1986 season. When Cartwright returned for the 1986–1987 season, he and Ewing would often start and play together but during the 1987–1988 season Cartwright was relegated to the bench.

Chicago Bulls (1988–1994)

On June 15, 1988, Cartwright was traded, along with two draft picks, to the Chicago Bulls for forward

Charles Oakley Charles Oakley (born December 18, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player. Oakley played for the Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, Toronto Raptors, Washington Wizards, and Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association ( ...

and two draft picks. The Bulls were willing to part with Oakley, the league's second-leading rebounder in the 1986–87 and 1987–88 seasons, because of their need for a center and the rapid development of power forward

Horace Grant Horace Junior Grant Sr. (born July 4, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player who is a special advisor for Michael Reinsdorf, the president and chief operating officer of the Chicago Bulls. He attended and played college baske ...

. Cartwright was the Bulls' starting center during their string of three consecutive NBA championships in

and

. During the 1992–93 season, Cartwright took an elbow to the throat during a regular-season game against the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The Pacers were first esta ...

that fractured his

larynx The larynx (), commonly called the voice box, is an organ in the top of the neck involved in breathing, producing sound and protecting the trachea against food aspiration. The opening of larynx into pharynx known as the laryngeal inlet is about ...

and left him with a hoarse voice. The Bulls, who were without

Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...

the following season following his retirement, made the

1994 NBA playoffs File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nelson Ma ...

but were eliminated in a controversial game 7 in the Eastern Conference semifinals by the Knicks. Cartwright departed the team thereafter as an unrestricted free agent.

Seattle SuperSonics (1994–1995)

Cartwright left the Bulls as a free agent and signed with the Seattle SuperSonics. He only played in 29 games for the Sonics, and retired after the 1994–95 NBA season.

Coaching career

A year after his retirement, Cartwright joined the Bulls once again as an assistant coach under Phil Jackson ahead of the 1996–97 NBA season. He was a member of the championship-winning teams in

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

and

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

. The Bulls went through significant changes following the 1997–98 season, with not only Jordan and Pippen leaving, but

Tim Floyd Tim Floyd (born February 25, 1954) is a former American college basketball coach, most recently the head coach at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). He was formerly the head coach of several teams in the NCAA and the NBA. Floyd is also kn ...

taking over as head coach from Jackson. The Bulls had a lengthy rebuilding effort, and Cartwright took over the Bulls 27 games into the 2001–02 season, going 17–38 after the team's 4–23 start under Floyd and interim head coach

Bill Berry William Thomas Berry (born July 31, 1958) is an American musician who was the drummer for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Although best known for his economical drumming style, Berry also played other instruments, including guitar, bass guitar ...

, the latter whom coached for two games before Cartwright was named interim head coach. The Bulls finished 21–61 on the year and the following season Cartwright was promoted from interim to permanent head coach. In the 2002–03 season the Bulls finished 30–52, but Cartwright would last only 14 games into the 2003–04 season — going 4–10 — before being fired.

Pete Myers Peter Eddie Myers (born September 15, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player and a former assistant coach for the NBA team Chicago Bulls. Early life and college career Born in Mobile, Alabama, Myers graduated from William ...

and finally Scott Skiles coached the Bulls immediately following Cartwright's tenure. In 2004, the New Jersey Nets hired Cartwright as an assistant coach under

Lawrence Frank Lawrence Adam Frank (born August 23, 1970) is an American basketball coach who is currently working as the President of Basketball Operations for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He formerly served as head c ...

. In 2008, Cartwright was named as an assistant coach for the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

under Terry Porter. Suns

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

Steve Kerr Stephen Douglas Kerr (born September 27, 1965) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach of the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is a nine-time NBA champion, havi ...

hired the former big man to help coach veteran big man

Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), known commonly as "Shaq" ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. O'Neal is regarded as one of the greates ...

, all-star Amar'e Stoudemire, and upcoming draft picks. After the Suns dismissed Porter and promoted assistant Alvin Gentry, Cartwright stayed on as assistant coach with the team. In January 2013, Cartwright was hired to coach

Osaka Evessa is a professional basketball team playing in the B.League, the top-tier professional basketball league of Japan. The team is operated by the Human Group Sports Entertainment Company. The team is named after Ebisu. In July 2015 it was announced ...

in Japan. In September 2014, Cartwright was hired as the head coach of the Mexico National Basketball Team.

Personal life

Cartwright married his junior high school sweetheart, Sheri, and together they have four children (Justin, Jason, James and Kristin). He also has two grandkids. He earned a bachelor's degree in sociology from USF and later obtained a master's degree in organization development in 1998 from the same institution. In 2016, Cartwright became USF’s director of university initiatives. Cartwright is an avid fan of

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

music from the 1950s and 1960s, and plays guitar and collects transistor radios as hobbies.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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, 82 , , , , 38.4 , , .547 , , – , , .797 , , 8.9 , , 2.0 , , 0.6 , , 1.2 , , 21.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 82 , , , , 35.7 , , .554 , , .000 , , .788 , , 7.5 , , 1.4 , , 0.6 , , 1.0 , , 20.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 72 , , 50 , , 28.6 , , .562 , , – , , .763 , , 5.8 , , 1.2 , , 0.7 , , 0.9 , , 14.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 82 , , 82 , , 30.1 , , .566 , , – , , .744 , , 7.2 , , 1.7 , , 0.5 , , 1.5 , , 15.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 77 , , 77 , , 32.3 , , .561 , , .000 , , .805 , , 8.4 , , 1.4 , , 0.6 , , 1.3 , , 17.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 2 , , 0 , , 18.0 , , .429 , , – , , .600 , , 5.0 , , 2.5 , , 0.5 , , 0.5 , , 6.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 58 , , 50 , , 34.3 , , .531 , , – , , .790 , , 7.7 , , 1.7 , , 0.7 , , 0.4 , , 17.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 82 , , 4 , , 20.4 , , .544 , , – , , .798 , , 4.7 , , 1.0 , , 0.5 , , 0.5 , , 11.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

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, 78 , , 76 , , 29.9 , , .475 , , – , , .766 , , 6.7 , , 1.2 , , 0.3 , , 0.5 , , 12.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

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, 71 , , 71 , , 30.4 , , .488 , , – , , .811 , , 6.5 , , 2.0 , , 0.5 , , 0.5 , , 11.4 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", † , style="text-align:left;",

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, 79 , , 79 , , 28.8 , , .490 , , – , , .697 , , 6.2 , , 1.6 , , 0.4 , , 0.2 , , 9.6 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", † , style="text-align:left;",

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, 64 , , 64 , , 23.0 , , .467 , , – , , .604 , , 5.1 , , 1.4 , , 0.3 , , 0.2 , , 8.0 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", † , style="text-align:left;",

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, 63 , , 63 , , 19.9 , , .411 , , – , , .735 , , 3.7 , , 1.3 , , 0.3 , , 0.2 , , 5.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

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, 42 , , 41 , , 18.6 , , .513 , , – , , .684 , , 3.6 , , 1.4 , , 0.2 , , 0.2 , , 5.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, 29 , , 19 , , 14.8 , , .391 , , – , , .625 , , 3.0 , , 0.3 , , 0.2 , , 0.1 , , 2.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 963 , , 676 , , 28.5 , , .525 , , .000 , , .771 , , 6.3 , , 1.4 , , 0.5 , , 0.7 , , 13.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", All-Star , 1 , , 0 , , 14.0 , , .500 , , – , , – , , 3.0 , , 1.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 8.0

Playoffs

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1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

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, 2, , , , 24.5, , .353, , –, , .667, , 6.5, , 0.5, , 0.5, , 0.5, , 10.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to Internet protocol suite, TCP/IP is officially completed (this is consid ...

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, 6, , , , 28.7, , .581, , –, , .773, , 5.7, , 0.7, , 0.5, , 1.2, , 11.2 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

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, 12, , , , 33.2, , .556, , –, , .863, , 8.3, , 0.4, , 0.2, , 1.2, , 17.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

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, 4, , 0, , 19.0, , .500, , –, , .733, , 4.8, , 1.5, , 0.0, , 0.8, , 7.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

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, 17, , 17, , 34.3, , .486, , –, , .700, , 7.1, , 1.2, , 0.5, , 0.7, , 11.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...

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, 16, , 16, , 28.9, , .413, , –, , .674, , 4.7, , 1.0, , 0.3, , 0.3, , 8.1 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

† , style="text-align:left;",

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, 17, , 17, , 30.1, , .519, , –, , .688, , 4.7, , 1.9, , 0.5, , 0.4, , 9.5 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

† , style="text-align:left;",

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, 22, , 22, , 37.8, , .474, , –, , .419, , 4.5, , 1.7, , 0.5, , 0.2, , 5.6 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

† , style="text-align:left;",

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, 19, , 19, , 23.4, , .465, , –, , .778, , 4.5, , 1.5, , 0.6, , 0.2, , 6.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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, 9, , 8, , 21.0, , .326, , –, , .813, , 4.9, , 1.2, , 0.3, , 0.2, , 4.6 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 124 , , 99 , , 28.2 , , .482 , , – , , .725 , , 5.4 , , 1.3 , , 0.4 , , 0.5 , , 8.9

Head coaching record

NBA

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, style="text-align:left;", , 55, , 17, , 38, , , , style="text-align:center;", 8th in Central, , , —, , —, , —, , — , style="text-align:center;", Missed playoffs , - , style="text-align:left;",

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, style="text-align:left;", , 82, , 30, , 52, , , , style="text-align:center;", 6th in Central, , , —, , —, , —, , — , style="text-align:center;", Missed playoffs , - , style="text-align:left;",

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, style="text-align:left;", , 14, , 4, , 10, , , , style="text-align:center;", (fired), , , —, , —, , —, , — , style="text-align:center;", — , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 151, , 51, , 100, , , , , , —, , —, , —, , —, ,

Japan

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, style="text-align:left;", 2013 , 21, , 15, , 6, , , , style="text-align:center;", 7th in Western, , , —, , —, , —, , — , style="text-align:center;", Missed playoffs

References

External links

*
Official NBA bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cartwright, Bill 1957 births Living people All-American college men's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Japan American men's basketball players Basketball players from Sacramento County, California Centers (basketball) Chicago Bulls assistant coaches Chicago Bulls head coaches Chicago Bulls players National Basketball Association All-Stars New Jersey Nets assistant coaches New York Knicks draft picks New York Knicks players Osaka Evessa coaches Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Phoenix Suns assistant coaches San Francisco Dons men's basketball players Seattle SuperSonics players Sportspeople from Elk Grove, California Sportspeople from Lodi, California

Early life

College basketball career

Professional career

New York Knicks (1979–1988)

Chicago Bulls (1988–1994)

Seattle SuperSonics (1994–1995)

Coaching career

Personal life

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Head coaching record

NBA

Japan

See also

References

External links