Ronald Carter Jr. (born August 31, 1956) is an American former

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 ...

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 positions, positions in a regulation basketball game ...

. He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

VMI Keydets The VMI Keydets are the athletic teams that represent the Virginia Military Institute. All sports participate in the NCAA Division I, and all but three compete in the Southern Conference (the exceptions being men's and women's swimming and diving ...

Early years

Carter attended

Perry Traditional Academy Perry Traditional Academy, also known as Perry High School, is a high school in the Perry North neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Perry is one of ten secondary schools in the Pittsburgh Public Schools. The school opened during the 1922� ...

. He accepted a basketball scholarship from the

Virginia Military Institute The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is a public senior military college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1839 as America's first state military college and is the oldest public senior military college in the U.S. In k ...

. He contributed to the school winning two

Southern Conference The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I. Southern Conference College football, football teams c ...

championships (1975–76 and 1976–77). In the NCAA basketball tournament, he led his team to the

Elite Eight In the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, NCAA men's Division I basketball championship or the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament, NCAA women's Division I basketball championship, the "Elite Eight" comprises the final eight t ...

(

1976 Events January * January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 18 – Full diplomatic ...

) and the Sweet 16 (

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

). As a senior, he set school records with 45 points scored in a single-game (against

Long Beach State College California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...

), 19 free throws made in a single-game (against

Siena College Siena College is a Private college, private Franciscan college in Loudonville, New York, United States. It was founded by the Order of Friars Minor in 1937 and is named after the Franciscan friar Bernardino of Siena. The college enrolls approxi ...

), and an average of 26.3 points per contest during the season. He averaged 19.2 points (third in school history), 6.9 rebounds per game and had sixty 20+ scoring games (school record) during his career. He was a three-time All-SoCon and All-tournament selection. He was a two-time

Player of the Year and the SoCon tournament's Most Outstanding Player (1976). He finished his college career as the tenth-highest scorer in conference history (2,228 points). Carter was the first athlete in school history to have his jersey retired (#13). In 1989, he was inducted into the VMI Sports Hall of Fame. He was named to the

's 75th Anniversary third-team Men's Basketball Team. In 2018, he was inducted into the

Hall of Fame.

Professional career

Carter was selected 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 ...

in the 2nd round (26th pick overall) of the

1978 NBA draft The 1978 NBA draft was the 32nd annual NBA draft, draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on June 9, 1978, at the Plaza Hotel in New York City, New York, before the 1978–79 NBA season, 1978–79 season. In this dr ...

, becoming the first

player to be drafted and to play in the league. He appeared in 46 games under head coach

Jerry West Jerry Alan West (May 28, 1938 – June 12, 2024) was an American basketball player and executive. He played professionally for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA), and is widely regarded as one of the greatest ...

. He averaged 3.1 points per game and was waived on October 4, 1979. On November 15, 1979, he signed as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

with the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

. He played in 13 games and averaged 2.5 points. He was cut on December 5. On February 15, 1980, he was re-signed as a

by the

. He was released on February 25. On September 15, 1983, he attempted a comeback and signed with the

. He was released on October 24.

Post-playing career

After his basketball career, Carter was the director of economic development for the

Chicago Housing Authority The Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) is a municipal corporation that oversees public housing within the city of Chicago. The agency's Board of Commissioners is appointed by the Mayor of Chicago, city's mayor, and has a budget independent from that ...

, a consultant to the

Gary, Indiana Gary ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 69,093 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it Indiana's List of municipalities in Indiana, eleventh-most populous city. The city has been historical ...

Housing Authority, and city manager of

Benton Harbor, Michigan Benton Harbor is a city in Berrien County, Michigan, Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is 46 miles southwest of Kalamazoo, Michigan, Kalamazoo and 71 miles southwest of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Grand Rapids. According to the 2020 2 ...

Personal life

Carter has 4 children: sons Ronald and

Paul Paul may refer to: People * Paul (given name), a given name, including a list of people * Paul (surname), a list of people * Paul the Apostle, an apostle who wrote many of the books of the New Testament * Ray Hildebrand, half of the singing duo ...

, and daughters Bria and Brooke. Ronald III was a 2-time NCAA All-American triple jumper while attended

California State University, Long Beach California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...

. Paul played collegiate basketball at the

University of Illinois at Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a public research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus established under the Universi ...

and played professionally in Europe.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, Ron 1956 births Living people American city managers American men's basketball players Basketball players from Pittsburgh Indiana Pacers players Los Angeles Lakers draft picks Los Angeles Lakers players Point guards Shooting guards VMI Keydets basketball players