Kenneth Alan Carr (born August 15, 1955) 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 Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player. Carr was selected in the first round (sixth overall) of the

1977 NBA draft The 1977 NBA draft was the 31st annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on June 10, 1977, before the 1977–78 season. In this draft, 22 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball player ...

by 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 Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

and played ten seasons in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA). A 6'7" forward from

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State, North Carolina State, NC State University, or NCSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1887 and p ...

, Carr won a gold medal with the

United States national basketball team The USA Basketball Men's National Team, commonly known as Team USA and the United States men's national basketball team, is the basketball team representing the United States. It is the most successful men's team in international competition, ...

at the

1976 Summer Olympics The 1976 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Montreal 1976 (), were an international multi-sport event held from July 17 to August 1, 1976, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Montreal ...

. Carr played in the NBA from 1977 to 1987 with the Lakers,

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

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 Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

, and

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (N ...

. Carr scored 7,813 (11.6) points in his NBA career and grabbed 4,999 (7.4)

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 ...

Early years

As a youth, Carr was primarily a football player growing up in Washington, D.C., and did not play serious basketball until he was 14-years-old. "It was kind of by accident, to be honest, but I just fell in love with basketball," Carr recalled. "Plus, back in those days, it was kind of tough to find football shoes that would fit me, to tell the truth." Carr was a 1974 graduate of DeMatha Catholic in

Hyattsville, Maryland Hyattsville is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. It is an urban suburb of Washington, D.C. The population was 21,187 at the 2020 United States census. History Before Europeans reached the area, the upper Anacostia ...

, where he played under Hall of Fame coach

Morgan Wootten Morgan Bayard Wootten (April 21, 1931January 21, 2020) was an American high school basketball coach for 46 seasons at DeMatha Catholic High School in Hyattsville, Maryland. He led the Stags to five national championships and 33 Washington Catho ...

. As a sophomore, he suffered a knee injury. At DeMatha, Carr was teammates with Hall of Famer

Adrian Dantley Adrian Delano Dantley (born February 28, 1955) is an American former professional basketball player and coach who played 15 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Dantley is a six-time NBA All-Star, a two-time All-NBA selection an ...

, who graduated a year ahead of Carr. The two would become Olympic teammates and college and NBA rivals. While teammates at DeMatha, Carr and Dantley led DeMatha to a 36-game winning streak.

College career

Carr played at North Carolina State at the varsity level from 1974 to 1977 under coach Norm Sloan. As a freshman in 1974–1975, Carr averaged 13.8 points and 7.7 rebounds as NC State finished 22–6. NC State was defending National Champions, with Carr playing alongside Hall of Famer David Thompson, Phil Spence,

Monte Towe Monte Corwin Towe (born September 27, 1953) is an American basketball coach and retired basketball player. He was a starting point guard on the 1973-74 North Carolina State Wolfpack men's basketball team, 1973–74 North Carolina State Wolfpack ...

and

Tim Stoddard Timothy Paul Stoddard (born January 24, 1953) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. A right-handed pitcher, he played for six different teams in Major League Baseball between 1975 and 1989, and was a member of the 1983 Baltimore Or ...

among others. In 1975–1976 Carr averaged a

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 ...

with 26.6 points, 10.3 rebounds along with 2.1 assists. He led the ACC in scoring as NC State finished 21–9, with Thompson having graduated and moved to the ABA's

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 Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...

. Carr was named a Third team

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

–

UPI United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ce ...

, AP and NABC and First-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference. As a junior, Carr averaged 21.0 points and 9.9 rebounds as NC State finished 17–11 in 1976–1977, with Carr playing alongside freshman

Hawkeye Whitney Charles "Hawkeye" Whitney (born June 22, 1957) is an American former professional basketball player. After starring at North Carolina State, he was drafted by the Kansas City Kings in the first round of the 1980 NBA draft. A knee injury limited ...

. Carr led the ACC in scoring again and was named a third team

–

and First-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference. He declared for the

NBA draft The NBA draft is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) annual event, dating back to 1947 BAA draft, 1947, in which the teams in the league can Draft (sports), draft players who declare for the draft and that are Eligibility for the NBA dr ...

after the season. "I just thought my body and my game was ready to move on," Carr said of leaving college early. "I was a very physical player and I would get a lot of fouls. I was a little bigger and more aggressive than most people I played against. I got frustrated, and I figured it was time to move on." In 86 career games for North Carolina State, Carr averaged 20.6 points, 9.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.5 steals, shooting 51% from the floor and 68% from the line. "Kenny was a great, great player," reflected long-time N.C. State sports information director Frank Weedon. "But he was so stoic and never showed any emotions, and I think people forget about him. He may have been the second greatest player to ever play here, behind David (Thompson)."

1976 Olympic Team

Carr was selected to the

1976 United States men's Olympic basketball team The 1976 United States men's Olympic basketball team represented the United States at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The U.S. team won its eighth gold medal, out of the previous nine Summer Olympic Games. Roster 1976 U ...

which represented the US in the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal.

Team USA The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States in international competitions. Olympic teams Additionally, these teams may compete in other international competitions such as ...

captured the gold medal. Team USA was coached by

Dean Smith Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball Coach (basketball), head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North C ...

, assisted by

Bill Guthridge William Wallace Guthridge (July 27, 1937 – May 12, 2015) was an American college basketball coach. Guthridge initially gained recognition after serving for thirty years as Dean Smith's assistant at the University of North Carolina and summin ...

and John Thompson. In six Olympic Games, Carr averaged 6.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.0 assists. Carr was the sixth leading scorer behind his high school teammate

(19.3), Scott May (16.7),

Mitch Kupchak Mitchell Kupchak (born May 24, 1954) is an American professional basketball executive and retired player. He is the former president of basketball operations and general manager of the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NB ...

(12.5), Phil Ford (11.3) and Quinn Buckner (7.3). The roster also included future NBA players Walter Davis,

Phil Hubbard Philip Gregory Hubbard (born December 13, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He won a gold medal in the 1976 Summer Olympics and after graduating from the University of Michigan, played for the Detroit Pistons ...

and

Ernie Grunfeld Ernest Grunfeld (born April 24, 1955) is a Romanian-American former professional basketball player and former general manager in the National Basketball Association (NBA). In college at the University of Tennessee, he set a new record as the sc ...

. "I just enjoyed throwing the ball up with some of the best players in the world," Carr said of his Olympic experience. "The best competition we had was in training camp. I think the best time of the whole thing was when we were in Chapel Hill and we would just get up and play every day. That is the most fun I have ever had."

Professional career

Los Angeles Lakers

Carr was selected by the

in the first round (6th overall) of the

. As a rookie

power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to center (basketball), centers and are typi ...

, he broke a metatarsal bone in his left foot in the team's final preseason game. He was lost for over 5 weeks, appearing in 52 games, while averaging 6.2 points and 4.0 rebounds. On August 3, 1978, he broke his right foot in a pick-up game of basketball before the start of his second season. He recovered to appear in 72 games, averaging 7.4 points and 4.1 rebounds. In the 1979–80 championship season, he was a backup behind

Spencer Haywood Spencer Haywood (born April 22, 1949) is an American former professional basketball player and Olympic gold medalist. Haywood is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, being inducted in 2015. Early life Haywood was born on Ap ...

and Jim Chones. He appeared in 5 of the first 6 contests, averaging 3.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 11.4 minutes. On October 24, 1979, he was traded to the

, in exchange for a 1980 2nd round draft pick (#31- Wayne Robinson) and a 1981 2nd round draft choice (#28-

Gene Banks Eugene Lavon Banks (born May 15, 1959) is an American former professional basketball player. He was born and raised in Philadelphia. Early life and education Banks was born in Philadelphia. He attended West Philadelphia High School, where he w ...

). In just over two seasons (129 games), he never lived up to his draft expectations, averaging 6.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 15 minutes of playing time.

Cleveland Cavaliers (1979–1982)

In the 1979–80 season, he was named a starter at

, raising his averages to 11.8 points and 7.4 rebounds. In the 1980–81 season, he was the league's sixth-leading rebounder with a 10.3 average, while scoring 15.2 points per contest. On February 16, 1982, he was traded along with Bill Laimbeer to the

, in exchange for

, center Paul Mokeski, a 1982 1st round draft pick (#12- John Bagley) and a 1982 2nd round draft choice (#28-

Dave Magley David John Magley (born November 24, 1959) is an American retired basketball player and coach. He is currently the president of both The Basketball League (TBL) and the Basketball Super League (BSL) after previously serving as commissioner of t ...

). In 201 games with the

, he averaged 14.1 points and 9.0 rebounds.

Detroit Pistons

In 28 games with the

, Carr averaged 7.4 points and 4.9 rebounds. On June 23, 1982, he was traded to the

, in exchange for a 1982 1st round draft pick (#18- Ricky Pierce).

Portland Trail Blazers

In the 1983–84 season, he averaged 15.6 points and 7.8 rebounds. In the 1985–86 season, he missed 27 games with a cartilage tear in his right knee, but still managed to post 11.1 points and 8.9 rebounds per contest. In the 1986–87 season, he averaged 10.8 points and 10.2 rebounds. In 316 games with the

, Carr averaged 12.4 points and 8.1 rebounds. On January 18, 1987, he suffered a herniated disc injury against the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

, that forced him to miss 34 games. On August 31, 1987, he couldn't recover from the injury and announced his retirement. "To me, Kenny was one of those players that was ahead of his time," said former North Carolina, NBA rival and 1976 Olympic teammate Phil Ford about Carr. "Now, it's not uncommon to see someone with Kenny's size and strength with the ability to play on the perimeter and knock in jump shots or put the ball on the deck and drive to the basket. When we were coming along, guys with Kenny's strength and size always played inside. He was just a little before his time."

NBA Career totals

In 674 career games, Carr scored 7,813 (11.6) points, had 4,999 (7.4)

. He shot 51% from the floor and 68% from the line.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 52 , , , , 14.1 , , .444 , , , , .647 , , 4.0 , , .5 , , .3 , , .3 , , 6.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 72 , , , , 16.0 , , .500 , , , , .606 , , 4.1 , , .8 , , .5 , , .4 , , 7.4 , - , style="text-align:left;" rowspan=2, , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 5 , , , , 11.4 , , .438 , , , , 1.000 , , 3.4 , , .2 , , .4 , , .2 , , 3.2 , - , style="text-align:left;",

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

, 74 , , , , 24.1 , , .493 , , .000 , , .655 , , 7.7 , , 1.0 , , .9 , , .7 , , 12.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , , , 32.3 , , .511 , , .000 , , .714 , , 10.3 , , 2.4 , , .9 , , .5 , , 15.2 , - , style="text-align:left;" rowspan=2, , style="text-align:left;",

, 46 , , 42 , , 32.2 , , .517 , , .111 , , .659 , , 8.6 , , 1.4 , , 1.3 , , .3 , , 15.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

, 28 , , 6 , , 15.9 , , .458 , , .000 , , .646 , , 4.9 , , .8 , , .2 , , .2 , , 7.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

, 82 , , 26 , , 28.4 , , .505 , , .333 , , .697 , , 7.2 , , 1.4 , , .8 , , .5 , , 12.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, style="background:#cfecec;", 82* , , 57 , , 29.9 , , .561 , , .000 , , .673 , , 7.8 , , 1.9 , , .8 , , .4 , , 15.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 48 , , 30 , , 23.3 , , .523 , , .000 , , .720 , , 6.7 , , 1.2 , , .5 , , .4 , , 10.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 55 , , 31 , , 28.3 , , .498 , , .000 , , .687 , , 8.9 , , 1.3 , , .7 , , .5 , , 11.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 49 , , 43 , , 29.4 , , .504 , , .000 , , .746 , , 10.2 , , 1.7 , , .6 , , .3 , , 10.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 674 , , 235 , , 25.5 , , .510 , , .079 , , .684 , , 7.4 , , 1.4 , , .7 , , .4 , , 11.6

Playoffs

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

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...

, style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 2 , , , , 8.5 , , .333 , , , , , , 2.0 , , .0 , , .5 , , .0 , , 3.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

, style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 8 , , , , 14.6 , , .543 , , , , .625 , , 2.1 , , .5 , , .5 , , .3 , , 5.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...

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

, 7 , , , , 24.4 , , .433 , , , , .783 , , 7.3 , , 1.4 , , .4 , , .7 , , 10.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

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

, 5 , , , , 36.0 , , .525 , , , , .632 , , 7.0 , , 1.2 , , .4 , , .4 , , 14.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

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

, 9 , , 9 , , 29.4 , , .526 , , .000 , , .800 , , 7.8 , , 1.1 , , .3 , , .2 , , 12.9 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

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

, 4 , , 4 , , 35.8 , , .571 , , .000 , , .733 , , 13.3 , , 1.8 , , 1.3 , , .3 , , 14.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 35 , , 13 , , 25.5 , , .512 , , .000 , , .729 , , 6.6 , , 1.1 , , .5 , , .3 , , 10.5

Personal life

Carr, married wife Adrianna in 1979. They raised three children: Cameron, Devon and Alyx. Carr earned a Bachelor's Degree in Education from North Carolina State, finishing his degree while he was a rookie with the Lakers. Carr became CEO of Carr Construction in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. He started the now 110 employee company out of his basement in 1987, while playing with the Trail Blazers.https://www.alumni.ncsu.edu/s/1209/images/editor_documents/2014/alumni_profiles/kenny.carr.pdf?gid=1001&pgid=61&sessionid=087587b4-c44b-4378-955c-b4cafb3f029d&cc=1 Carr had intended to return to his hometown of Washington, D.C., but the success of his business and his three children has kept him in Oregon."My kids liked being here, and we were settled," Carr said. "Once that happens, you don't necessarily live your life for yourself anymore. You make compromises." Today, at Carr Construction, Carr works alongside his son, Devon Carr, a graduate of

Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctor ...

with a degree in engineering.

Honors

* Carr's #32 jersey is honored by

NC State Wolfpack men's basketball The NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team represents North Carolina State University in NCAA Division I men's basketball competition. NC State is one of the seven founding members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Prior to joining the ACC in 1 ...

. * In 1998, Carr was inducted into the DeMatha Catholic High School Hall of Fame.Legends of N.C. State Basketball, by Tim Peeler (2004) Sports Publishing LLC;(September 1, 2004)

References

External links

Career statistics
at basketball-reference.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Carr, Kenny 1955 births Living people All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players at the 1976 Summer Olympics Basketball players from Washington, D.C. Cleveland Cavaliers players DeMatha Catholic High School alumni Detroit Pistons players Los Angeles Lakers draft picks Los Angeles Lakers players Medalists at the 1976 Summer Olympics NC State Wolfpack men's basketball players Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Portland Trail Blazers players Power forwards Small forwards United States men's national basketball team players 20th-century American sportsmen