Wendell Carter Jr.

BIOGRAPHY

Wendell Carter Jr. was born on April 16, 1999, in Atlanta, Georgia. He is a forward/center in the NBA.

Carter attended Pace Academy in Atlanta, Georgia. As a sophomore, he averaged 21.3 points per game, 12.3 rebounds per game, 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 Georgia Stars to a Nike Peach Jam championship title. Carter 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 points per game and 13.6 rebounds per game. 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, CP3 All stars sponsored by Houston Rockets point guard Chris Paul. 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, 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, Nike Hoop Summit, and the McDonald's All-American Game, 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, 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 in July 2017. Carter ultimately chose to play at Duke University despite considering the opportunity to enroll and play at Harvard.

Carter played at Duke for one season. Against the Indiana Hoosiers, 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 the season, Carter averaged 13.1 points and 9.1 rebounds.

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.

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