Bronta Laron Profit (born August 5, 1977) is an American professional

basketball coach Basketball coaching is the act of directing and strategizing the behavior of a basketball team or individual basketball player. Basketball coaching typically encompasses the improvement of individual and team offensive and defensive skills, as wel ...

and 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.

Early life and college

Profit was born in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, South Carolina, Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston metropolitan area, South Carolina, Charleston–North Charle ...

. Because his stepfather James Truiett served in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sig ...

, Profit lived in various Air Force bases as a child including

Kirtland Air Force Base Kirtland Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in the southeast quadrant of the Albuquerque, New Mexico urban area, adjacent to the Albuquerque International Sunport. The base was named for the early Army aviator Col. ...

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding i ...

Howard Air Force Base Howard Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located in Panama. It discontinued military operations on 1 November 1999 as a result of the Torrijos-Carter Treaties, which specified that US military facilities in the former Pa ...

in the

Panama Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...

, Dover Air Force Base in

Dover, Delaware Dover () is the capital and second-largest city of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is also the county seat of Kent County and the principal city of the Dover, DE, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Kent County and is part of ...

. In 1995, Profit graduated from Caesar Rodney High School in Camden, Delaware as an honor student who scored over 1000 on his first attempt at the

SAT The SAT ( ) is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and scoring have changed several times; originally called the Scholastic Aptitude Test, it was later called the Schol ...

exam. From 1995 to 1999, Profit attended the

University of Maryland, College Park The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of ...

. With the Maryland Terrapins basketball team, Profit played as a

small forward The small forward (SF), also known as the three or swingman, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers but taller, larger, and stronge ...

and earned all-conference all four seasons: Honorable Mention All-

ACC ACC most often refers to: * Atlantic Coast Conference, an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic conference located in the US *American College of Cardiology, A US-based nonprofit medical association that bestows credentials upon cardiovascular spec ...

as a freshman then for his other three seasons third-team All-ACC. In his junior year, Profit led the ACC in steals with 2.7 steals per game and led the Terrapins in scoring with 15.8 points per game. Profit was an honorable mention All-American as a junior. In his senior year, Profit averaged 12.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game.

Professional career

First stint with Wizards (1999–2001)

In the 1999 NBA draft, 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 ...

selected Profit in the second round as the 38th pick overall. Profit hoped to transition to a

shooting guard The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional basketball position, positions in a regulation basketball game. ...

professionally. On September 22, 1999, the Magic traded Profit to the

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays ...

for a second-round draft pick in the

2001 NBA draft The 2001 NBA draft took place on June 27, 2001 in New York City, New York. Kwame Brown became the first high school player to be drafted with the first overall pick in the history of the NBA. The selection of Kwame Brown by the Washington Wizards, ...

. In his rookie season () with the Wizards, Profit played in 33 games, averaging 1.5 points and 6.8 minutes, and missed 21 games due to

tendinitis Tendinopathy, a type of tendon disorder that results in pain, swelling, and impaired function. The pain is typically worse with movement. It most commonly occurs around the shoulder ( rotator cuff tendinitis, biceps tendinitis), elbow (tennis el ...

in a

knee In humans and other primates, the knee joins the thigh with the leg and consists of two joints: one between the femur and tibia (tibiofemoral joint), and one between the femur and patella (patellofemoral joint). It is the largest joint in the ...

. On April 18, 2000, Profit scored a season-high 10 points against the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of ...

. The following season, Profit played in 35 games and started the final 12 games of the regular season. Profit averaged 9.7 points, 5.8 assists, and 3.9 rebounds and scored a season-high 18 points twice. Against the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...

on March 31, 2001, Profit reached season highs in steals (7) and rebounds (8). On April 14 against 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 ...

, Profit had his first

double-double In basketball, a double-double is a single-game performance in which a player accumulates ten or more in two of the following five statistical categories: points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots. The first "double" in the ter ...

in his career from scoring 12 points and a season-high 14 assists. The Wizards traded Profit to the Orlando Magic, the team that originally drafted Profit, for the draft rights to Brendan Haywood on August 1, 2001. The Magic waived Profit on October 15, and team general manager John Gabriel explained that releasing Profit was the cost of trading the first-round pick Haywood.

First international stint (2002–2004)

Profit would then play internationally from 2002 to 2004. Starting in January 2002, Profit played six games with Premiata Montegranaro of the Italian

Lega Basket Serie A The Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) is a professional men's club basketball league that has been organised in Italy since 1920. Serie A is organised by Lega Basket, which is regulated by the Italian Basketball Federation (FIP). It is the highest-tie ...

and averaged 13.7 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 2.2 steals. From January 2003 to 2004, Profit played with the Guangdong Southern Tigers of the

Chinese Basketball Association The Chinese Basketball Association (), often abbreviated as the CBA, is the first-tier professional men's basketball league in China. The league is commonly known by fans as the CBA, and this acronym is even used in Chinese on a regular basi ...

(CBA). In his second season with the Southern Tigers, Profit averaged 5.1 points and 1.8 rebounds per game. The Guangdong Southern Tigers also won the CBA championship in 2004. During his stint abroad, Profit also attended training camp with the NBA's

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

in October 2002 and participated 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 Ea ...

in 2003

NBA Summer League The NBA Summer League, also known as the Las Vegas Summer League, is an off-season competition organized by the National Basketball Association. NBA teams come together to try out different summer rosters instead of their regular season line-ups ...

Second stint with Wizards (2004–2005)

On October 1, 2004, Profit re-signed with the Washington Wizards as a free agent. Profit scored 11 points in the October 21 preseason 92–83 victory over the defending champion

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 L ...

. Because he had to fill in roles for injured players and was a free agent who had not played an NBA game in over two years, Profit played longer than expected in that game. After cutting Billy Thomas, the Wizards awarded Profit the 15th and final team roster spot. Entering the , the Wizards had only eight available players for opening night, and four (including leading scorers

Gilbert Arenas Gilbert Jay Arenas Jr. (; born January 6, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player. Arenas attended Grant High School in the Valley Glen district of Los Angeles, and accepted a scholarship offer to the University of Arizona lat ...

and Larry Hughes) were serving suspensions. Despite these shortcomings, the Wizards rallied from a 19-point deficit to defeat the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference ...

102–91 on the season opener of November 3, 2004. Profit led the Wizards in assists (with 6) and scored 11 points. On March 5, 2005, Profit made the winning tip shot with 3.1 seconds left for the Wizards to defeat the

Charlotte Bobcats Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

86–84. After All-Star forward Antawn Jamison left the game during the third quarter with a sore knee, Wizards coach

Eddie Jordan Edmund Patrick Jordan, OBE (born 30 March 1948), also known as EJ, is an Irish businessman, television personality and former motorsport team owner. Born in Dublin, Jordan worked first at the Bank of Ireland. He won the Irish Kart Championsh ...

kept Profit for the rest of the game. The Wizards made the NBA Playoffs in 2005 for the first time in eight seasons and had not won a playoff game since 1988. Ultimately, the number-one Eastern Conference team

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

swept the Wizards in four games in the 2005 Eastern Conference Semifinals. Profit played in 42 games (including 4 starts) with Washington during the breakout 2004–05 season and averaged 3.2 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 0.9 assists.

Los Angeles Lakers (2005–2006)

On August 2, 2005, the Washington Wizards traded Profit and Kwame Brown to the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

for Caron Butler and Chucky Atkins. Profit played in 25 games and started one game. In his one start, the November 20, 2005 loss to the

, Profit played 18 minutes, scored two points off

free throw In basketball, free throws or foul shots are unopposed attempts to score points by shooting from behind the free-throw line (informally known as the foul line or the charity stripe), a line situated at the end of the restricted area. Free throws ...

s, and made two defensive rebounds and one assist. On December 21, 2005, Profit suffered a season-ending ruptured

achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcaneus ...

after substituting into a game for

Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant ( ; August 23, 1978 – January 26, 2020) was an American professional basketball player. A shooting guard, he spent his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Widely r ...

, who had just scored 62 points in 3 quarters 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 Southwest Division. Th ...

. The Lakers waived Profit on January 17, 2006 to make room for rookie

Ronny Turiaf Ronny Turiaf ( , ; born 13 January 1983) is a French former professional basketball player who played 10 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Turiaf grew up in France and played college basketball for the Gonzaga Bulldogs in the ...

Second international stint (2006–2010)

On December 12, 2006, Anadolu Efes S.K. of the

Turkish Basketball League Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and ...

signed Profit to a one-month contract with a full-season option. In seven games with Anadolu Efes, Profit averaged 3.1 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.3 assists. Efes released Profit in mid-February 2007. Profit later joined the team Grises de Humacao, part of the Puerto Rican league BSN, wearing jersey #7. In his debut with Grises on April 25, 2007, Profit had 15 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists in the loss. He suffered a torn

hamstring In human anatomy, a hamstring () is any one of the three posterior thigh muscles in between the hip and the knee (from medial to lateral: semimembranosus, semitendinosus and biceps femoris). The hamstrings are susceptible to injury. In quadrupe ...

in early May 2007. However, Profit later returned in mid-month and scored 23 points in a 105–97 win over Cangrejeros de Santurce on May 14. In a May 18 overtime loss, Profit scored 26. Grises waived Profit by the end of the month. In the 2007 season, Profit played 10 games and averaged 18.5 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 2.4 assists. Club Deportivo Libertad of the Argentine LNB signed Profit on February 7, 2008. The team won the LNB championship in 2008.

Coaching career

Profit joined the

as an assistant coach on August 30, 2012.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Washington , 33 , , 1 , , 6.8 , , .356 , , .176 , , .400 , , .8 , , .8 , , .2 , , .1 , , 1.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Washington , 35 , , 12 , , 17.3 , , .394 , , .269 , , .733 , , 1.8 , , 2.5 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , 4.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Washington , 42 , , 4 , , 10.2 , , .438 , , .286 , , .640 , , 1.8 , , .9 , , .4 , , .1 , , 3.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L. A. Lakers , 25 , , 1 , , 11.2 , , .476 , , .167 , , .875 , , 1.7 , , .6 , , .4 , , .2 , , 4.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 135 , , 18 , , 11.4 , , .419 , , .236 , , .712 , , 1.5 , , 1.2 , , .5 , , .2 , , 3.3

Playoffs

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

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; " Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered ...

, style="text-align:left;", Washington , 3 , , 0 , , 1.7 , , .000 , , , , , , .3 , , .3 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0

References

External links

Maryland Terrapins bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Profit, Laron 1977 births Living people African-American basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Argentina American expatriate basketball people in China American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Turkey American men's basketball players Anadolu Efes S.K. players Baloncesto Superior Nacional players Basketball players from Delaware Basketball players from Albuquerque, New Mexico Basketball players from South Carolina Caciques de Humacao players Guangdong Southern Tigers players Libertad de Sunchales basketball players Los Angeles Lakers players Maryland Terrapins men's basketball players Orlando Magic draft picks People from Dover, Delaware Point guards Shooting guards Small forwards Sportspeople from Charleston, South Carolina Washington Wizards players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American sportspeople