James Darel Carrier (born October 26, 1940) is a 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. Born in

Warren County, Kentucky Warren County is a county located in the south central portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 134,554, making it the fifth-most populous county in Kentucky. The county seat is Bowling Green. Warren Coun ...

, Carrier played his high school basketball at the now defunct Bristow High School. A 6'3" guard, Carrier played college basketball at

Western Kentucky University Western Kentucky University is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky. It was founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a quarter-century earlier. It operates regional campuses in Glasgow, Elizabethtow ...

under coach E.A. Diddle. Carrier was selected in the 9th round of the

1964 NBA Draft The 1964 NBA draft was the 18th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on May 4, 1964, before the 1964–65 season. In this draft, nine NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players ...

by the

St. Louis Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays its home games at ...

. However, Carrier originally played AAU basketball and later signed with and played for the

Kentucky Colonels The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of ...

of the rival

American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major men's professional basketball league from 1967 to 1976. The ABA ceased to exist with the ABA–NBA merger, American Basketball Association–National Basketball Association merger in 1976, ...

(ABA). Carrier was a three-time ABA All-Star with the Colonels (1968, 1969, 1970), teaming with

Louie Dampier Louis Dampier (born November 20, 1944) is an American retired professional basketball player. A 6-foot-tall guard, Dampier is one of only a handful of men to play all nine seasons in the American Basketball Association (ABA) (1967–1976), all w ...

to form the most explosive backcourt in the ABA; in each of the league's first three seasons, both averaged at least 20 points per game. Carrier played for the

Memphis Tams Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

during the 1972–73 season and then retired from pro basketball with 7,011 career points. He is a member of the

ABA All-Time Team The ABA All-Time Team were chosen in 1997 on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the founding of the American Basketball Association (ABA). It comprised the 30 best and most influential players of the ABA during its ten years and nine full regul ...

and had the highest career 3 point shooting percentage in ABA history. Carrier and his wife, Donna, a retired schoolteacher live on a farm just west of

Oakland, Kentucky Oakland is a List of cities in Kentucky, home rule-class city in Warren County, Kentucky, Warren County, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 260 during the year 2000 U.S. Census. It is included in the Bowling Green metropolitan area ...

. They have two sons, Jonathan and Josh. The Carrier's youngest son, Josh, played

for the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentu ...

for

Tubby Smith Orlando Henry "Tubby" Smith (born June 30, 1951) is an American college basketball coach. He was the men's basketball coach at High Point University, his alma mater. Smith previously served in the same role at the University of Tulsa, the Univers ...

. Like his father, he was also a guard. He played for the

United States men's national basketball team The USA Basketball Men's National Team, commonly known as the United States men's national basketball team, is the basketball team representing the United States. They are the most successful team in international competition, winning medals in ...

at the

1967 FIBA World Championship The 1967 FIBA World Championship was the 5th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. It was hosted by Montevideo, Uruguay from 27 May to 11 June 1967. Venues Competing nations Competition form ...

.1967 USA Basketball

References

External links

1940 births Living people American men's basketball players Basketball players at the 1967 Pan American Games Basketball players from Kentucky Kentucky Colonels players Memphis Tams players Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Pan American Games medalists in basketball People from Warren County, Kentucky Phillips 66ers players Shooting guards St. Louis Hawks draft picks United States men's national basketball team players Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball players Medalists at the 1967 Pan American Games 1967 FIBA World Championship players {{Louisville-stub