Aquille Carr facts for kids

Aquille Carr (born September 28, 1993) is an American professional basketball player. He plays as a Point guard for the Reading Rebels in The Basketball League (TBL). Aquille was a highly watched player during his high school years. Many expected him to play college basketball. He first planned to join the Seton Hall University Pirates men's basketball team. However, he later decided to skip college. Instead, he played for the Delaware 87ers in the NBA Development League. In 2014, he hoped to join the NBA but was not chosen in the draft. Carr has also played for teams in Canada and Cyprus. He has had two periods playing for the Baltimore Hawks in the ABA league.

High School Basketball Star

Aquille Carr grew up in Baltimore. He is known for being a smaller player with amazing speed and ball-handling skills. People often said he was "generously listed at 5 feet 7 inches."

Freshman Year Highlights

As a freshman, Aquille led his Patterson High School team to a big win. They beat a top-ranked team, Digital Harbor, with Aquille scoring 20 points. He also had 10 assists and six steals. The Baltimore Sun newspaper named him their Boys Athlete of the Week twice that December. In one game, he scored 38 points, with 15 in the final quarter. He helped Patterson beat Josh Selby's team, Lake Clifton, by scoring 39 points and making 19 assists. In his first year, he averaged 25.5 points, 8.0 assists, and 5.3 steals per game.

Sophomore Season Success

During his second year, Aquille scored an amazing 57 points in a game against Forest Park. This helped his team win the Big Miller Christmas Classic. He made seven three-pointers in that game. He also broke his school's record for most points in a single game, a record that had stood for 50 years! He led his team to a fantastic 25-2 record. They reached the Class 4A state championship game. In his first two years at Patterson, he scored over 1,000 points. In April 2011, ESPN recognized him as the High School Player of the Week.

Junior Year Championship

In his junior year, Aquille led the Patterson High Clippers to win the Maryland 3A state championship. He scored 28 points and had eight assists in the championship game.

The "Crime Stopper"

Aquille became very popular in Baltimore. The Sun called him a "must-see phenomenon." Many people came to watch his games. Patterson High School sometimes moved games to a bigger arena at Morgan State University to fit the large crowds. He earned nicknames, with "The Crime Stopper" being the most famous. People joked that crime in East Baltimore went down during his games. His coach, Harry Martin, even said, "The crime in East Baltimore probably goes down during our games."

International Play and Scholarship Offers

In April 2011, Aquille played for the U.S. junior team in a tournament in Milan, Italy. He helped his team win the gold medal. He averaged 40.0 points per game. After scoring 45 points in one game, Italian fans were so excited they carried him off the court! A professional basketball club in Italy, Lottomatica Roma, reportedly offered him a $750,000 contract. This was a huge offer for a high school player. Aquille planned to finish high school at Patterson. However, he later transferred to different prep schools.

By June 2011, ESPN ranked Aquille as a top point guard and overall player for the 2013 college recruiting class. Rivals.com also ranked him highly. He played for the Baltimore Elite Amateur Athletic Union team. Aquille said he received about 28 scholarship offers before his sophomore year ended.

Professional Basketball Career

Delaware 87ers (2013–2014)

On November 1, 2013, Aquille Carr was chosen by the Delaware 87ers in the NBA Development League Draft. In his first game on November 23, 2013, he scored 15 points and had 2 assists. He later asked to be released from the team in January 2014 because he wanted more playing time.

Saint John Mill Rats (2014)

In April 2014, Aquille decided to enter the 2014 NBA draft. However, he was not selected by any NBA team. In September 2014, he signed a one-year deal with the Saint John Mill Rats in Canada. He played in nine games, averaging 12.9 points and 3.4 assists. He was released by the team in December 2014.

Baltimore Hawks (2016)

In January 2016, Aquille joined the Baltimore Hawks in the American Basketball Association.

Beltway Bombers (2016–2017)

He then played for the Beltway Bombers in the APBL during the 2016–17 season.

Girne Universitesi SK (2017–2018)

In November 2017, Aquille signed with Girne Universitesi SK, a team in Cyprus.

Return to Baltimore (2018–2019; 2021–2022)

Aquille Carr returned to play for the Baltimore Hawks for the 2018–19 season. In February 2019, he had an amazing game where he scored 65 points! He played for the Hawks again during the 2021–22 season.

Reading Rebels (2022–Present)

In April 2022, Aquille joined the Reading Rebels of TBL. He has continued to play with the Rebels in 2023 and 2024.

Player Skills and Style

Some experts wondered if Aquille's game would work well in college or professional basketball because of his smaller size. However, he is known for his incredible athletic abilities. He can reportedly jump very high, about 48 inches! He has excellent ball-handling skills, which help him create space to shoot. He is also athletic enough to dunk despite his height.

CBS Sports called him "one of the most explosive scorers in the country." Sports Illustrated wrote that he has "explosive speed, electric ball-handling skills and court vision that could rival Steve Nash's." ESPN described him as "one of the quickest and [most] explosive players in the country." They noted that his jump shot could be more consistent and he sometimes had too many turnovers. The Baltimore Sun compared these small criticisms to "complaining about the floor mats on a Ferrari" – meaning they were minor issues for such a talented player.