Joel DeWayne Berry II (born April 1, 1995) 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 court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player. He 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 ...

for the North Carolina Tar Heels and led the team to the 2017 national championship. Berry played professionally for two seasons in the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA De ...

and one season in Turkey before his retirement in 2021.

High school career

20140402 MCDAAG Joel Berry dribbling in traffic

Berry, a 6'0 point guard, played high school basketball at

Lake Highland Preparatory School Lake Highland Preparatory School is a private, coeducational school in Orlando, Florida. It was founded as an all-white school in 1970 by the board of a whites-only, Christians-only junior college. This gave white parents a private alternative ...

in Orlando, Florida. He led his team to two state titles and was the first player named Florida Mr. Basketball three times. He was named a

Parade All-American ''Parade'' was an American nationwide Sunday newspaper magazine, distributed in more than 700 newspapers in the United States until 2022. The most widely read magazine in the U.S., ''Parade'' had a circulation of 32 million and a readership of 5 ...

and

McDonald's All-American McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hamburger s ...

as a senior in 2014.

College career

Freshman season (2014–15)

Berry's freshman season was hampered by injury. He averaged 4.2 points and 1.5 assists per game backing up junior

Marcus Paige Marcus Taylor Paige ( sr-Cyrl, Маркус Тејлор Пејџ; born September 11, 1993) is an American-Serbian professional basketball player for Monbus Obradoiro of the Liga ACB. He played college basketball for the University of North Caro ...

at point guard.

Sophomore season (2015–16)

As a sophomore, Berry moved into the starting lineup at point guard, with Paige shifting over to shooting guard, resulting in a dramatic increase in Berry's offensive production. Berry helped the team to an Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) regular season title. He then helped the team to an ACC tournament championship, averaging 17 points per game and coming away with Most Valuable Player honors. In the post-season, Berry and the Tar Heels made the Final Four and 2016 NCAA championship game. During the championship game, Berry scored 20 points and dished out four assists, but North Carolina fell short on a last-second shot to Villanova, 77–74.

Junior season (2016–17)

As a junior, Berry led the Tar Heels to the ACC regular season title. In the NCAA Tournament, despite playing with injuries to both ankles, Berry led the Tar Heels to a 2017 NCAA men's basketball championship. In the national title game against Gonzaga, Berry scored 22 points and had six assists, and was thereafter named Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four, becoming the first player since

Bill Walton William Theodore Walton III (born November 5, 1952) is an American television sportscaster and former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for coach John Wooden and the UCLA Bruins, winning three consecutive national ...

to score 20 points or more in back-to-back title games. While Berry was one out of 182 players that declared early entry into the

2017 NBA draft The 2017 NBA draft was held on June 22, 2017, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. ...

, he ultimately decided to return to North Carolina for his senior season instead, announcing his decision on April 25, 2017.

Senior season (2017–18)

In his Senior year, Berry led the Tar Heels to the ACC tournament final. Despite losing in the second round of the NCAA tournament, he averaged 17.1 points and 3.2 assists per game and had 93 three-pointers. He was named the winner of the Dean Smith Most Valuable Player award at the 2017–18 UNC men's basketball awards ceremony, and was one of eight finalists for the James E. Sullivan Award, which is presented by the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) to the top amateur athlete in the United States. He was also voted a third team All-American by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). Berry earned this distinction just two weeks after being named a 2018 first team All-ACC selection.

Professional career

South Bay Lakers (2018–2019)

After going undrafted in the 2018 NBA draft, Berry played with the Los Angeles Lakers summer league team, and they signed him to an NBA contract afterwards. On October 8, 2018, he was waived by the Lakers after appearing in three preseason games. He was subsequently signed by the Lakers' G League affiliate, the

South Bay Lakers The South Bay Lakers are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Los Angeles. Founded in 2006 as the Los Angeles D-Fenders, the team is owned by the Los Angeles Lakers, who were the first National Basketball Associa ...

. On March 2, 2019, Berry was removed from the active roster by the Lakers due to a season-ending injury.

Greensboro Swarm (2019–2020)

The

Greensboro Swarm The Greensboro Swarm are an American basketball team of the NBA G League based in Greensboro, North Carolina, and are affiliated with the Charlotte Hornets. The Swarm play their home games at the Greensboro Coliseum Fieldhouse. The team became ...

, the NBA G League affiliate of the Charlotte Hornets, on September 27, 2019 acquired the rights to Joel Berry II in a trade with the

(Los Angeles Lakers affiliate). In return, the Swarm sent its second-round selection in the 2019 NBA G League draft (No. 40 overall) to South Bay. On March 6, 2020, Berry scored a career high 44 points on 17-for-29 shooting from the field and 8-for-15 from three to go along with two assists and three rebounds in the Greensboro Swarm's 134–129 loss to the Erie Bayhawks.

Beşiktaş (2020–2021)

On November 24, 2020, Berry signed with Beşiktaş of the

Basketball Super League Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's ...

(BSL). On August 4, 2021, Berry was added to the Charlotte Hornets Summer League Roster. On August 24, 2021, Berry announced his retirement from professional basketball on the Ceiling is the Roof Podcast.

Post-playing career

On October 12, 2021, Berry joined ACC Network as a college basketball studio analyst on the show ''Nothing but Net''.

Career statistics

Professional

, - , align=center , 2018–19 , align=left ,

, 21 , , 22.4 , , .391 , , .272 , , .800 , , 1.3 , , 2.5 , , .6 , , .3 , , 11.1 , - , align=center , 2019–20 , align=left ,

, 34 , , 17.4 , , .425 , , .325 , , .700 , , 2.1 , , 2.1 , , 1 , , .2 , , 8.0 , - , align=center , 2020–21 , align=left , Beşiktaş ,

, 26 , , 23.3 , , .420 , , .365 , , .854 , , 1.7 , , 3.3 , , 1.1 , , .0 , , 9.2 , -

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2014–15 , style="text-align:left;",

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

, 30 , , 0 , , 13.2 , , .404 , , .354 , , .757 , , .9 , , 1.5 , , .4 , , 0 , , 4.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, 40 , , 39 , , 30.7 , , .448 , , .376 , , .872 , , 3.3 , , 3.8 , , 1.5 , , .2 , , 13.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , style="text-align:left;",

, 38 , , 37 , , 30.4 , , .426 , , .383 , , .774 , , 3.1 , , 3.6 , , 1.4 , , .1 , , 14.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;",

, 36 , , 36 , , 33.1 , , .396 , , .344 , , .893 , , 3.5 , , 3.2 , , 1.2 , , .3 , , 17.1 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 144 , , 112 , , 27.6 , , .420 , , .365 , , .834 , , 2.8 , , 3.1 , , 1.1 , , .2 , , 12.7

References

External links

North Carolina Tar Heels bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berry, Joel 1995 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportspeople African-American basketball players All-American college men's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Turkey American men's basketball players Basketball players from Orlando, Florida Beşiktaş men's basketball players Greensboro Swarm players McDonald's High School All-Americans North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) People from Apopka, Florida Point guards South Bay Lakers players Sportspeople from Greater Orlando