Austin Carr

Austin Carr

Personal information
Born	Austin George Carr March 10, 1948 (1948-03-10) Washington, D.C.
Nationality	American
Physical stats
Listed height	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight	200 lbs (91 kg)
Career information
High school	Mackin (Washington, D.C.)
College	Notre Dame (1968–1971)
NBA Draft	1971 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1st overall
Selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers
Playing career	1971–1981 (10 years)
Position	Guard
Career history
1971–1980	Cleveland Cavaliers
1980	Dallas Mavericks
1980–1981	Washington Bullets
Career highlights and awards
NBA All-Star (1974) NBA All-Rookie First Team (1972) J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award (1980) No. 34 retired by the Cleveland Cavaliers Naismith College Player of the Year (1971) AP Player of the Year (1971) Helms Foundation Player of the Year (1971) UPI Player of the Year (1971) Consensus first-team All-American (1971) Consensus second-team All-American (1970)

Austin George Carr (born March 10, 1948) is an American retired professional basketball player who prominently played for the Cleveland Cavaliers. He also played for the Dallas Mavericks and Washington Bullets of the NBA. He is known by Cleveland basketball fans as "Mr. Cavalier".

Early life

Carr grew up in Washington D.C., and attended Holy Redeemer School, and later Mackin Catholic High School.

College career

Carr played for the University of Notre Dame, coming to prominence as a highly recruited player. Carr ended his three-year career with 2,560 points (an average of 34.5 points per game), ranking him fifth all-time in college basketball history at the time of his departure. He became only the second college player ever to tally more than 1,000 points in a season, joining Pete Maravich in that select group.

NBA career

Cleveland Cavaliers

Carr was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 1971 NBA Draft as the 1st overall selection. During his first season he was suffered through injuries. After his return, he began to display his skills which got him eligible to the 1972 NBA All-Rookie Team.

Carr's had his best statistical season in the 1973-74 season, averaging 21.9 points, 3.8 assists, 85.6% free-throw percentage, 38.3 minutes per game, while also averaging 3.6 rebounds and appearing in 81 games. Carr's performance resulted him being selected to the 1974 Eastern Conference All-Star team, his first and only appearance in an all-star game.

In the 1974-75 season, Carr suffered a knee injury that put him out indefinitely. This cause likely effected the Cavaliers, preventing them from capturing their first-ever playoff berth, as they finished with a record of 40–42 and fell just one game shy of qualifying for the 1975 playoffs.

During the 1975-76 season, Carr helped lead the Cavaliers to their first winning season, playoff appearance and Central Division title in franchise history. This marked the first of three straight playoff appearances for the team. In the 1976 Eastern Conference Semifinals, their first playoff series in franchise history, the Cavaliers eliminated the Washington Bullets four games to three. The Cavaliers advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history, where they would lose to the eventual NBA champion Boston Celtics in six games.

Carr played in all 82 games in the 1976–77 season for the first time since his second NBA season. Carr helped lead the Cavaliers back to the playoffs, but were eliminated in the first round by the Washington Bullets in a close three-game series. Carr once again played in all 82 games in the 1977–78 season, helping the Cavaliers reach the playoffs for a third consecutive year. In the first round of the Eastern Conference they faced off against the New York Knicks in the 1978 playoffs, losing in two games.

Carr played two more seasons with the Cavaliers but both with an unsuccessful record. He had a strong 1978–79 season, averaging 17 points per game and shooting a career best 47.5% from the field in 82 games. However, the Cavaliers would finish with a 30–52 record and fail to reach the playoffs for the first time since 1975. The Cavaliers also failed to reach the playoffs the following season with a 37–45 record, which was Carr's final season with the team.

Dallas Mavericks

Carr joined the Dallas Mavericks in only eight games in the 1980-81 season. He had the lowest stats of his career with the team.

Washington Bullets

Carr was traded to the Washington Bullets in the 1980-81 season, playing for 39 games, which what would be his final season in the NBA.

Present

Broadcasting career

Carr currently serves as the Director of Community Relations for the Cavaliers and is also a color commentator on the team's broadcasts on Bally Sports Ohio.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1971-72	Cleveland	43	—	35.8	.426	—	.760	3.5	3.4	—	—	21.2
1972-73	Cleveland	82	—	37.8	.446	—	.822	4.5	3.4	—	—	20.5
1973-74	Cleveland	81	—	38.3	.445	—	.856	3.6	3.8	1.1	.2	21.9
1974-75	Cleveland	41	—	26.4	.468	—	.840	2.6	3.8	1.2	.0	14.5
1975-76	Cleveland	65	—	19.7	.442	—	.791	2.0	1.9	.6	.0	10.1
1976-77	Cleveland	82	—	29.4	.457	—	.795	2.9	2.7	.7	.1	16.2
1977-78	Cleveland	82	—	26.7	.438	—	.813	2.3	2.7	.8	.2	12.3
1978-79	Cleveland	82	—	33.1	.475	—	.816	3.5	2.6	.9	.2	17.0
1979-80	Cleveland	77	—	20.7	.465	.333	.738	2.1	1.9	.5	.0	11.8
1980-81	Dallas	8	—	9.6	.250	—	.500	1.1	1.1	.1	.0	2.0
1981-82	Washington	39	—	14.9	.388	.000	.640	1.3	1.3	.4	.1	4.9
Career		682	—	28.8	.449	.154	.804	2.9	2.8	.8	.1	15.4
All-Star		1	0	5.0	.000	—	—	1.0	.0	.0	.0	.0

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1976	Cleveland	13	—	21.0	.478	—	.611	1.8	2.0	.5	.2	11.8
1977	Cleveland	3	—	27.7	.282	—	.333	3.3	3.3	.7	.3	7.7
1978	Cleveland	2	—	34.5	.370	—	.938	4.0	2.5	1.0	.5	17.5
Career		18	—	23.6	.426	—	.691	2.3	2.3	.6	.3	11.8