Wendell Andre Carter Jr. (born April 16, 1999) is an American 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 for the

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The franchise was establ ...

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). 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

Duke Blue Devils The Duke Blue Devils are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Duke University, located in Durham, North Carolina. Duke's athletics department features 27 varsity teams that all compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Associatio ...

High school career

Carter attended

Pace Academy Pace Academy is a K–12 college preparatory private school, located at 966 West Paces Ferry Road in the Buckhead area of Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Pace has approximately 1,115 students. History Pace Academy was founded in Atlanta in ...

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, as part of the class of 2017. As a sophomore, he averaged 21.3

points per game Points per game, often abbreviated PPG, is the average number of points scored by a player per game played in a sport, over the course of a series of games, a whole season, or a career. It is calculated by dividing the total number of points by nu ...

, 12.3

rebounds per game '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 ...

, and 4.1 blocks while leading the Knights to a (27–3) record and a Georgia 6AA regional title. Carter would continue to develop his game during the summer of 2015 where he led his AAU team, Georgia Stars, to a

Nike Elite Youth Basketball League The Nike Elite Youth Basketball League, also known as Nike EYBL, or simply EYBL, is a basketball circuit for teams of players aged 17 and under. The circuit was founded in 2010 and is composed of AAU travel teams. Both boys and girls play in the E ...

(EYBL) Peach Jam championship and was named Co-MVP alongside Jared Harper. after his sophomore season, Carter also earned the Georgia Region 6 AA Player of the Year and second-team Atlanta Tipoff Club All Metro-honors. In his junior season in 2015–16, he averaged 21.6

and 13.6

. In the state finals game, Carter scored 30 points and recorded 20 rebounds to lead Pace Academy to win the 2016 Georgia class AA state Championship. He was named an honorable mention All-American by the Naismith Trophy, a first-team Junior All-American by MaxPreps, the Georgia Class AA Player of the year, the Atlanta/South Fulton Player of the Year, and a first-team all-state selection as a junior. In the spring and summer of 2016, Carter competed for the AAU team, Team CP3 sponsored by

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 ...

point guard

Chris Paul Christopher Emmanuel Paul (born May 6, 1985), nicknamed "CP3" and “The Point God”, is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Paul is widely regarded as one o ...

. He averaged 16.8 points per game and 10.2 rebounds per game on the Nike EYBL Circuit, earning second-team All-EYBL honoree. As a senior, he averaged 22.7 points, 15.5

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 ...

, and 5.8 blocks while leading the Knights to a Georgia class 3A state championship on March 9, 2017. Carter was named Georgia All-Classification Player of the Year, Gatorade Georgia Player of the Year, first-team All-America honors from the Naismith Trophy, second-team accolades from USA Today, and third-team recognition from MaxPreps. Carter played in the

Jordan Brand Classic The Jordan Brand Classic is a high school All-Star basketball game played annually in April. The game's rosters feature the best and most highly recruited high school boys in the senior class including alumns like Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, Bl ...

Nike Hoop Summit The Nike Hoop Summit is an international men's basketball all-star game sponsored by Nike, held once a year since 1995, except from 2001–2003, which features the USA Basketball Men's Junior Select Team against a World Select Team of internationa ...

, and the

McDonald's All-American Game The McDonald's All-American Game is the all-star basketball game played each year for American and Canadian boys' and girls' high school basketball graduates. Consisting of the top players, each team plays a single exhibition game after the concl ...

, where he finished with 10 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists. Off of the court, Carter was named the

Morgan Wootten National Player of the Year The McDonald's All-American Game is the all-star basketball game played each year for American and Canadian boys' and girls' high school basketball graduates. Consisting of the top players, each team plays a single exhibition game after the concl ...

, which goes to student-athletes who exemplify outstanding character, leadership, and academics. He earned a 3.8 GPA in high school and won his school's Lance and Shield Award as a top scholar-athlete. Carter was rated as a five-star recruit and the No. 4 overall recruit and No. 1 power forward in the 2017 high school class. Following high school, he was named to the All-Tournament Team of the

2016 FIBA Under-17 World Championship The 2016 FIBA Under-17 World Championship (Spanish: 2016 FIBA Campeonato Mundial Sub-17) was the 4th edition of the FIBA Under-17 World Championship, the biennial international men's youth basketball championship contested by the U17 national team ...

in July 2017. Carter ultimately chose to play at

Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...

despite considering the opportunity to enroll and play at

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

College career

Carter played at

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

for one season. On November 18, Carter scored 20 points and 11 rebounds in a 78–61 victory over Southern. On November 20, Carter was named ACC rookie of the week. Against the

Indiana Hoosiers The Indiana Hoosiers are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of Indiana University Bloomington, named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Indiana. The Hoosiers participate in NCAA Division I, Division I of the Nationa ...

, he had a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds despite being in foul trouble to lift Duke in a 91–81 win. On December 26, 2017, Carter earned his second ACC rookie of the week honor. On January 20, 2018, Carter tallied 21 points in an 81–54 victory against

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

. On January 24, 2018, Carter scored 23 points and 12 rebounds in an 84–70 win over Wake Forest. On February 11, 2018, Carter scored 19 points and 10 rebounds in an 80–69 victory over

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

. On February 18, 2018, Carter provided 15 points and 10 rebounds in a 66–57 win against Clemson. On February 21, 2018, Carter scored 18 points and 6 assist in a 82–56 win over

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

. On the season, Carter averaged 13.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Carter had one of the best freshman seasons for a power forward/center in Duke history where he would finish second all-time for Duke freshman with (335) rebounds, (76) blocked shots and (16) career double-doubles. Following Duke's loss in the 2018 NCAA men's basketball tournament, Carter announced his intention to forgo his final three seasons of collegiate eligibility and declare for the

2018 NBA draft The 2018 NBA Draft was held on June 21, 2018, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur United States college basketball players and other eligible players, including inte ...

. Carter was subsequently named both Second team All-ACC and ACC All-Freshman teams.

Professional career

Chicago Bulls (2018–2021)

On June 21, 2018, Carter was selected with the seventh overall pick by the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January 1 ...

. On July 3, 2018, Carter officially signed with the Bulls. On October 18, he made his NBA debut, scoring eight points and recording three rebounds, three assists and a block against the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...

, Four days later, Carter recorded career-highs in rebounds (9) and assists (4) against the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference (NBA), Western Conferenc ...

. On October 31, 2018, Carter scored a season high 25 points with eight rebounds, five assists, three blocks and three steals in a 107–108 overtime loss to the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...

. He would break that amount on November 30 with 28 points scored in a loss to the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at Li ...

. On March 24, 2019, Carter was ruled out for the remainder of the season with left thumb surgery.

Orlando Magic (2021–present)

On March 25, 2021, Carter and

Otto Porter Otto Porter Jr. (born June 3, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Georgetown Hoyas and was selected with the third overall ...

were traded to the

in exchange for

Nikola Vučević Nikola Vučević (Serbian Cyrillic: Никола Вучевић, ; born 24 October 1990) is a Montenegrin professional basketball player for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the USC ...

and

Al-Farouq Aminu Al-Farouq Ajiede Aminu (born September 21, 1990) is a Nigerian-American professional basketball player who last played for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He plays internationally with the Nigeria national basketba ...

. Orlando also received two future first-round draft picks. On October 16, 2021, Carter signed a four-year, $50 million rookie scale extension with the Magic. On March 20, 2022, Carter scored a career-high 30 points in a 90–85 win against the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team plays i ...

. Carter matched his career-high of 30 points in a 116–108 loss on November 1, 2022, against the

. On December 29, he was suspended by the NBA for one game without pay due to coming off the bench during an altercation in a game against the

the day before.

National team career

Carter played with the United States U17 team at the

FIBA Under-17 Basketball World Cup The FIBA Under-17 Basketball World Cup (formerly FIBA Under-17 World Championship) is the under-17 men's world basketball championship organised by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA). The event was held for the first time in July 201 ...

, where he won gold. As well, he was named to the All-Tournament Team, along with teammate

Collin Sexton Collin Darnell Sexton (born January 4, 1999) is an American professional basketball player for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Alabama Crimson Tide. In January 2017 Sexton was sel ...

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, 44 , , 44 , , 25.2 , , .485 , , .188 , , .795 , , 7.0 , , 1.8 , , .6 , , 1.3 , , 10.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, 43 , , 43 , , 29.2 , , .534 , , .207 , , .737 , , 9.4 , , 1.2 , , .8 , , .8 , , 11.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, 32 , , 25 , , 24.8 , , .512 , , .364 , , .739 , , 7.8 , , 2.2 , , .6 , , .8 , , 10.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures rele ...

, 22 , , 19 , , 26.5 , , .493 , , .241 , , .721 , , 8.8 , , 1.6 , , .8 , , .8 , , 11.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 62 , , 61 , , 29.9 , , .525 , , .327 , , .691 , , 10.5 , , 2.8 , , .6 , , .7 , , 15.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 203 , , 192 , , 27.6 , , .513 , , .298 , , .731 , , 8.9 , , 2.0 , , .6 , , .9 , , 12.2

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;",

, 37 , , 37 , , 26.8 , , .561 , , .413 , , .738 , , 9.1 , , 2.0 , , .8 , , 2.1 , , 13.5

Personal life

Wendell's father, Wendell Sr., played professional basketball in the Dominican Republic after playing college basketball at Delta State. His mother, Kylia Carter, played basketball at the University of Mississippi. Carter Jr.'s parents stressed academics to him from a young age, ultimately culminating in his interest in a school like

. On February 23, 2018 Carter was 1 of 25 college players identified in an FBI investigation as having received impermissible benefits as a college athlete as a result of his mother allegedly having had her lunch paid for by an agent nine months before he signed to play for Duke.

References

External links

*
Duke Blue Devils bio

247 Sports bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, Wendell Jr. 1999 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportspeople African-American basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Atlanta Centers (basketball) Chicago Bulls draft picks Chicago Bulls players Duke Blue Devils men's basketball players McDonald's High School All-Americans Orlando Magic players Pace Academy alumni Power forwards (basketball)