Anthony Ynique "Cat" Barber (born July 25, 1994) 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

Porto Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...

of the

Liga Portuguesa de Basquetebol The Liga Portuguesa de Basquetebol ( en, Portuguese Basketball League), also known as Liga Betclic for sponsorship reasons, is the top men's professional club basketball league in Portugal. History From the 2008–09 season onward, the competit ...

(LPB). He played three seasons of

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

NC State North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The university ...

, where he earned first-team All-

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...

(ACC) honors as a junior.

High school career

Barber grew up in the same area of Virginia as

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) star

Allen Iverson Allen Ezail Iverson (; born June 7, 1975) is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "the Answer", he played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) at both the shooting guard and point guard positions. Iver ...

. Barber has even drawn comparisons to the former superstar in both his appearance and style of play. A standout player for Hampton High School, Barber averaged 21.0 points per game in his sophomore campaign. In 2011, Barber was named to the All-Eastern Region's first team in the

Peninsula District In the United States, the Peninsula District is a district of the Virginia High School League. It consists of public high schools in the cities of Hampton, Virginia, Hampton and Newport News, Virginia, Newport News, plus Gloucester High School (Vi ...

as the only underclassman. Barber led his school to a 27–6 record and a Virginia State Title in 2012. During his championship junior season, Barber averaged 21.3 points per game, earning him Class AAA Player of the Year honors. His senior year solidified his legacy at Hampton, posting a 22–6 record and averaging 20.2 points per game. He finished his high school career with 2,097 points total. During his high school years, Barber played

AAU basketball The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It has ...

under Boo Williams. Barber was selected to the

McDonald's All American 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 ...

Game. The

2013 McDonald's All-American Boys Game The 2013 McDonald's All-American Boys Game is an All-star basketball game that was played on April 3, 2013 at the United Center in Chicago, home of the Chicago Bulls. It is the 36th annual McDonald's All-American Game for high school boys. The ...

was held in Chicago's

United Center United Center is an indoor arena on the Near West Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is home to the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL). It is named ...

where Barber recorded 11 points, 4 assists and 2 steals. Barber was also able to capture a bronze medal in the 2012

Nike Global Challenge The Nike Global Challenge was an annual men's prep basketball tournament held in the Portland metropolitan area during the summer. Sponsored by Nike, Inc., games were usually played at Liberty High School (Hillsboro, Oregon), Liberty High School in ...

College career

Barber was ranked fourth among

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the five Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position. Point guards are expected to run t ...

s in the 2013 recruiting class, and was a highly coveted recruit. On September 15, 2012, Barber signed with North Carolina State University to play for the N.C. State basketball team after being recruited by assistant coach, Rob Moxley. In his recruitment process, Barber also looked at attending the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...

or the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...

. In 2015–16, Barber was named first-team All-ACC and led the conference with averages of 24 points and 39 minutes played per game. He was also named to the 35-man midseason watchlist for the

Naismith Trophy The Naismith Trophy is a trophy awarded to the men's champion of the FIBA Basketball World Cup, and is named in honor of basketball's inventor, James Naismith. The trophy was first awarded to the winner of the 1967 FIBA World Championship. The ...

. Over the course of his three seasons with the Wolfpack, he appeared in 104 games and posted averages of 15 points, four assists and three rebounds in 31 minutes per game. Barber finished his college career ranking 13th all time in NC State history in scoring with 1,507 points in just 3 years. On March 22, 2016, Barber declared for the NBA draft, forgoing his final year of college eligibility.

Professional career

Delaware 87ers (2016–2017)

After going undrafted in the 2016 NBA draft, Barber joined the

New Orleans Pelicans The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division and play their hom ...

for the

2016 NBA Summer League The 2016 NBA Summer League consisted of three pro basketball leagues organized by the National Basketball Association (NBA): the Orlando Pro Summer League, Utah Jazz Summer League, and Las Vegas Summer League. Ten teams participated in the week ...

. On August 31, 2016, he signed with 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 ...

, but was waived on October 24 after appearing in two preseason games. Five days later, he was acquired by the

Delaware 87ers Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

as an affiliate player of the 76ers.

Greensboro Swarm (2017)

On February 3, 2017, Barber was traded to the

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division, and pla ...

affiliate

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 ...

in exchange for guard

Aaron Harrison Aaron Malik Harrison (born October 28, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for Kaohsiung Steelers of the P. League+. He was considered one of the top high school recruits in 2013 and played college basketball for the University o ...

New Basket Brindisi (2017)

On July 26, 2017, Barber signed with

New Basket Brindisi New Basket Brindisi, for sponsorship reasons named Happy Casa Brindisi or shortly Brindisi, is a professional Italian basketball based in Brindisi, Apulia. It plays in the first division LBA in the 2022–23 season. Founded in 2004, the well-s ...

in Italy. On November 21, 2017, he parted ways with Brindisi after appearing in seven games.

Return to the Swarm (2017–2018)

On November 29, 2017, Barber returned to the

for a second stint. In 29 games played for the Swarm, Barber averaged 16.9 points, 4.5 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game.

Ironi Nahariya (2018)

On March 27, 2018, Barber signed with the Israeli team

Ironi Nahariya Ironi Nahariya Basketball Club ( he, מועדון הכדורסל עירוני נהריה; ) known for sponsorship reasons as Ironi Rain Nahariya () is a professional basketball club based in city of Nahariya in northern Israel. The team plays in t ...

for the rest of the season. On April 25, 2018, Barber recorded a season-high 25 points, shooting 5-of-8 from three-point range, along with five assists in a 77–81 loss to

Hapoel Gilboa Galil Hapoel Gilboa Galil ( he, הפועל גלבוע גליל) is a professional basketball club that is based in north-east Israel. The club plays its home game in the Israeli Basketball Premier League (the top tier of Israeli basketball) in a 2,250 ...

Third stint with the Swarm (2018–2019)

For the 2018–19 season, Barber re-joined the

Erie BayHawks (2019)

On February 21, 2019, Barber was traded to the Erie BayHawks for

John Gillon John Benjamin Gillon III (born March 31, 1994) is an American professional basketball player. He played in college for Little Rock, Colorado State, and Syracuse. College career Gillon started his collegiate career at Arkansas-Little Rock, where ...

Return to Ironi Nahariya (2019)

On March 28, 2019, Barber returned to

for a second stint, signing for the rest of the season. On April 15, 2019, Barber recorded a career-high 36 points, shooting 11-of-22 from the field, along with three rebounds and two assists in a 93–96 overtime loss to

. In 10 games played for Nahariya, he averaged 16.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.

College Park Skyhawks (2019–2020)

On November 8, 2019, Barber returned to the G League to play for the

College Park Skyhawks The College Park Skyhawks are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in College Park, Georgia, and are affiliated with the Atlanta Hawks. The Skyhawks play their home games at Gateway Center Arena at College Park a ...

. He was named G League player of the week on February 3, 2020, after averaging 26 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game in three games. He posted 29 points, six rebounds, six assists and two steals in a loss to the

Raptors 905 The Raptors 905 are a Canadian professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Mississauga, Ontario, and are affiliated with the Toronto Raptors. Raptors 905 began play in the 2015–16 season and play their home games at Paramount Fi ...

on March 10.

Mitteldeutscher BC (2021)

On February 18, 2021, Barber signed with

Mitteldeutscher BC Mitteldeutscher Basketball Club ( en, Central German Basketball Club), for sponsorship reasons named SYNTAINICS MBC, and commonly known as MBC, is a professional basketball club based in Weißenfels, Germany. The club currently plays in the Baske ...

of the German

Basketball Bundesliga The Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) (English language: ''Federal Basketball League''), for sponsorship reasons named easyCredit BBL, is the highest level league of professional club basketball in Germany. The league comprises 18 teams. A BBL season ...

Guelph Nighthawks (2021)

On April 15, 2021, Barber signed with the

Guelph Nighthawks The Guelph Nighthawks were a Canadian professional basketball team based in Guelph, Ontario, Canada, that competed in the Canadian Elite Basketball League. The team played home games at the Sleeman Centre. History On June 12, 2018, it was announ ...

of the

Canadian Elite Basketball League The Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) is a men's professional minor league basketball organization. The CEBL was founded in 2017 and began play in 2019 with six teams competing all owned and operated by ownership group Canadian Basketball ...

Atlanta Hawks / Return to College Park (2021–2022)

In October 2021, Barber rejoined the

. In 14 games, averaged 13.1 points, a team-high 5.8 assists and 3.9 rebounds in 26.3 minutes per game (.445 FG%, .367 3FG%, .759 FT%). On December 25, 2021, Barber signed a 10-day contract with the

Atlanta 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 (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Sou ...

. and was re-acquired by College Park on January 4.

Return to the Nighthawks (2022)

On May 12, 2022, Barber was reacquired by the

Budivelnyk (2022)

On August 11, 2022, Barber signed with

BC Budivelnyk BC Budivelnyk Kyiv (in Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Будівельник Київ) is a Ukraine, Ukrainian professional basketball club based in Kyiv. The club plays in the Ukrainian Basketball SuperLeague. In June 2018, it was forced to withdr ...

of the

European North Basketball League The European North Basketball League (ENBL) is regional professional men's club basketball league in northern, central and eastern Europe; it has been organised since 2021. ENBL format is based on the European Youth Basketball league (founded in ...

Third stint with College Park (2022–2023)

On December 27, 2022, Barber was reacquired by the

Scarborough Shooting Stars (2023)

On April 11, 2023, Barber signed with the

Scarborough Shooting Stars The Scarborough Shooting Stars are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They compete in the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) and play their home games at the Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre ...

Porto (2023–present)

On July 16, 2023, Barber signed with

of the

Personal life

The son of Pamela Barber, he has an older sister and a daughter. He majored in social work. Barber's older sister, Pam, is credited with giving him the moniker "Cat" due to his quick and agile movements as a child.

Career statistics

NBA

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

Atlanta 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 ...

, 3 , , 0 , , 4.3 , , .000 , , — , , .000 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 3 , , 0 , , 4.3 , , .000 , , — , , .000 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0

College

, - , align="left" , 2013–14 , align="left" ,

, 36 , , 18 , , 24.2 , , .401 , , .261 , , .696 , , 2.0 , , 3.5 , , .6 , , .0 , , 8.5 , - , align="left" , 2014–15 , align="left" ,

, 35 , , 33 , , 31.7 , , .439 , , .380 , , .733 , , 3.3 , , 3.7 , , .8 , , .0 , , 12.1 , - , align="left" , 2015–16 , align="left" ,

, 33 , , 33 , , 38.7 , , .434 , , .361 , , .865 , , 4.6 , , 4.5 , , .6 , , .1 , , 23.5 , - , align="left" , Career , align="left" , , 104 , , 84 , , 31.3 , , .428 , , .347 , , .793 , , 3.3 , , 3.9 , , .7 , , .0 , , 14.5

References

External links

NC State Wolfpack bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barber, Anthony 1994 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Canada American expatriate basketball people in Germany American expatriate basketball people in Israel American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Ukraine American men's basketball players Atlanta Hawks players Basketball players from Hampton, Virginia BC Budivelnyk players College Park Skyhawks players Delaware 87ers players Erie BayHawks (2017–2019) players Greensboro Swarm players Guelph Nighthawks players Hampton High School (Virginia) alumni Ironi Nahariya players McDonald's High School All-Americans Mitteldeutscher BC players NC State Wolfpack men's basketball players New Basket Brindisi players Point guards Scarborough Shooting Stars players Sportspeople from Newport News, Virginia Undrafted National Basketball Association players United States men's national basketball team players