Fred Carter
Fred Carter | |
|---|---|
| Born | Fredrick James Carter February 14, 1945 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Other names | Mad Dog, Doggy |
| Occupation(s) | Professional basketball player, basketball coach, sports broadcaster |
| Years active | 1969–1977 (player), 1978–1994 (coach), post-1994 (broadcaster) |
| Known for | NBA player for Baltimore Bullets, Philadelphia 76ers, Milwaukee Bucks; head coach of Mount St. Mary's Women's Basketball; NBA assistant and head coach; sports broadcaster |
Fredrick James Carter (born February 14, 1945), known by the nicknames "Mad Dog" and "Doggy", is a retired American professional basketball athlete and coach. His NBA career spanned eight seasons from 1969 to 1977, during which he played for the Baltimore Bullets, Philadelphia 76ers, and Milwaukee Bucks. Carter also served as the head coach for Mount St. Mary's Women's Basketball Team for three seasons, compiling a 60-32 record and guiding the squad to three appearances in the AIAW tournaments.
Early life
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on February 14, 1945, Carter was one of four siblings. His father worked as a junk dealer while his mother was employed as a domestic helper. He attended Benjamin Franklin High School, where he earned All-Public League honors as a senior by averaging 17 points per game at the center position. Although initially intending to join the Army, a visit to Cheyney University accompanying his girlfriend for an orientation persuaded him to complete high school and pursue collegiate basketball.
College
Following an impressive performance in a Philadelphia all-star game, Carter attracted the attention of College Basketball Hall of Fame coach Jim Phelan from Mount St. Mary's College in Maryland. Despite apprehensions about being the lone Black student on a predominantly white rural campus, Carter received strong encouragement from Phelan and enthusiastic support from fans who would chant "In Fred We Trust." Nevertheless, he encountered racial adversity during competitions in the American South, including instances of physical assault and discrimination.
Throughout his college career, the team achieved an 81-27 record and secured a Mason-Dixon Conference championship. Carter amassed a total of 1,840 points with averages of 21.9 points and 11 rebounds per game. His senior year was partially impacted by an injury to his eye.
Baltimore Bullets
Standing 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) tall and playing guard, Carter was chosen by the Baltimore Bullets in the third round as the 43rd overall pick in the 1969 NBA draft. His teammate and fellow Philadelphian Ray Scott dubbed him "Mad Dog" after an incident where Carter bit Scott during practice drills. On a roster featuring future Hall of Famers such as Gus Johnson, Earl Monroe, and Wes Unseld, along with players like Jack Marin and Kevin Loughery, Carter honed his skills necessary for NBA success.
In the decisive game of the 1971 Eastern Conference playoffs against their rivals, the New York Knicks, Carter made a crucial 20-foot jump shot with just 68 seconds left, securing a narrow 93-91 win. He contributed 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 assists in that game, earning hero status in Baltimore.
Philadelphia 76ers
Shortly after this highlight, Carter was traded two games into the following season along with Loughery to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Archie Clark, a second-round draft pick in 1973 (Louie Nelson), and cash on October 17, 1971. In his initial season with Philadelphia, he averaged nearly 14 points per game and then led the team with an average of 20 points per game during a season that concluded with an NBA-record low mark of 9-73—the worst record in league history. Carter is widely regarded as the top performer on that infamously underperforming squad and has reflected on that period as an important lesson in perseverance and drive.
Over four additional seasons with the Sixers, he maintained approximately a 21-point scoring average while contributing dependable rebounds and assists. The team reached the playoffs in 1976, where Carter posted an average of 28 points across three games against the Buffalo Braves. His final NBA season (1976-1977) was spent with the Milwaukee Bucks but was curtailed due to a severe ankle injury.
Throughout his NBA tenure, Carter accumulated a total of 9,271 points with averages of 15.2 points per game and a shooting percentage of 42.5%.
Mount St. Mary's Women's Basketball
In April 1978, Carter resumed his association with Mount St. Mary's by taking on the role of head coach for the women's basketball squad, committing significantly more effort than during his playing days. Throughout his tenure, the team achieved a 19-12 record in the 1978-79 season, securing fourth place in the Eastern AIAW Division II tournament; improved to an 18-9 record in 1979-80, earning third place; and concluded with a 23-11 record in 1980-81, once again finishing third in the tournament.
NBA Coaching Career
Carter held assistant coaching positions with several NBA teams: the Atlanta Hawks from 1981 to 1983, the Chicago Bulls between 1984 and 1985, and the Washington Bullets from 1985 to 1987. He then joined the Philadelphia 76ers as an assistant coach from 1987 until early in the 1992-93 season before being promoted to head coach from late 1992 until mid-1994.
Broadcasting Career
Following his coaching career, Carter transitioned into sports broadcasting, spending eight years at ESPN and an additional five years at NBA TV prior to retirement. As co-host of NBA Tonight, he was known for humorously dubbing himself "the best player on the worst team in NBA history."
Impact and Recognition
On December 1, 2007, Carter made history as the first Mount St. Mary's basketball alumnus to have his jersey number (33) retired during halftime of a game against Loyola College at Knott Arena. He is also acknowledged for helping to popularize the "fist bump."
Regular Season
|- | align="left" | 1969–70 | align="left" | Baltimore | 76 || – || 16.0 || .358 || – || .690 || 2.5 || 1.6 || – || – || 5.2 |- | align="left" | 1970–71 | align="left" | Baltimore | 77 || – || 22.2 || .417 || – || .650 || 3.3 || 2.1 || – || – || 10.4 |- | align="left" | 1971–72 | align="left" | Baltimore | 2 || – || 34.0 || .222 || – || .333 || 9.5 || 6.0 || – || – || 7.5 |- | align="left" | 1971–72 | align="left" | Philadelphia | 77 || – || 27.9 || .444 || – || .630 || 4.0 || 2.6 || – || – || 13.8 |- | align="left" | 1972–73 | align="left" | Philadelphia | 81 || – || 37.0 || .421 || – || .704 || 6.0 || 4.3 || – || – || 20.0 |- | align="left" | 1973–74 | align="left" | Philadelphia | 78 || – || 39.0 || .430 || – || .709 || 4.8 || 5.7 || 1.4 || 0.3||21.4 |- | align="left" | 1974–75 | align="left" | Philadelphia |77|| –|| 39.6|| .447|| –|| .738||4.4||4.4||1.1|| 0.3|| 21.9 |- | align="left" | 1975–76 | align="left" | Philadelphia | 82|| –||36.5|| .417|| –|| .702||3.6||4.5|| 1.7||0.2||18.9 |- | align="left" | 1976–77 | align="left" | Philadelphia |14|| –||16.9|| .426|| –|| .526||1.7||1.5||0.8||0.1||6.9 |- | align="left" | 1976–77 | align="left" | Milwaukee |47|| –||18.6|| .416|| –|| .753||2.0||2.2||0.6||0.1||8.3 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career |611|| –||30.0|| .425|| –|| .693||3.9||3.5||1.2||0.2||15.2 |}
Playoff Performance
|- | align="left" | 1969–70 | align="left" | Baltimore |7|| –||36.1|| .383|| –|| .607||4.4||3.4|| –|| –||14.1 |- | align="left" | 1970–71 | align="left" | Baltimore |'18'|| –||33.2|| .415|| –|| .644|| 4.6||2.0|| –|| –||14.6 |- | align="left" | 1975–76 | align="left" | Philadelphia |'3'|| –||41.7|||.433|||.867|||3.3|||5.0|||1.3|||0.3|||28.0 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Overall Playoff Career |'28'|| –|||34.8||| .410||| –||| .687|||4.4|||2.7|||1.3|||0.3|||15.9 }}