Joel Berry II facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Joel Berry II

Berry with the North Carolina Tar Heels in 2017
Personal information
Born	(1995-04-01) April 1, 1995 (age 30) Orlando, Florida, U.S.
High school	Lake Highland Preparatory (Orlando, Florida)
Listed height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Listed weight	195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
College	North Carolina (2014–2018)
NBA Draft	2018 / Undrafted
Pro career	2018–2021
Career history
2018–2019	South Bay Lakers
2019–2020	Greensboro Swarm
2020–2021	Beşiktaş
Career highlights and awards
NCAA champion (2017) NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player (2017) Third-team All-American – NABC (2018) First-team All-ACC (2018) Second-team All-ACC (2017) ACC tournament MVP (2016) No. 2 honored by North Carolina Tar Heels McDonald's All-American (2014) First-team Parade All-American (2014) 3× Florida Mr. Basketball (2012–2014)
Medals Representing the  United States FIBA World U17 Championship Gold 2012 Lithuania National team

Joel DeWayne Berry II (born April 1, 1995) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels. Joel helped lead his team to win the national championship in 2017. After college, Berry played professionally for two seasons in the NBA G League and one season in Turkey. He retired from playing in 2021.

High School Basketball Career

Joel Berry playing in the McDonald's All-American Game in 2014.

Joel Berry is a 6-foot-tall point guard. He played high school basketball at Lake Highland Preparatory School in Orlando, Florida. He led his team to win two state championships.

Joel was the first player ever to be named Florida Mr. Basketball three times. This award goes to the best high school basketball player in Florida. In his senior year (2014), he was named a Parade All-American and a McDonald's All-American. These are big honors for top high school players.

College Basketball Career

Freshman Year (2014–15)

Joel Berry's first year in college was a bit tough because of an injury. He played as a backup point guard and averaged 4.2 points and 1.5 assists per game.

Sophomore Year (2015–16)

In his second year, Joel became a starter for the Tar Heels. He played as the main point guard, and his scoring improved a lot. He helped his team win the regular season title in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).

Then, he led the team to win the ACC tournament championship. He scored 17 points per game in the tournament and was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP). The Tar Heels also made it to the Final Four and the NCAA championship game in 2016. In that championship game, Joel scored 20 points, but North Carolina lost by a small margin to Villanova.

Junior Year (2016–17)

As a junior, Joel Berry again led the Tar Heels to win the ACC regular season title. In the NCAA Tournament, even with injuries to both of his ankles, Joel helped the Tar Heels win the 2017 NCAA national championship.

In the championship game against Gonzaga, Joel scored 22 points and had six assists. He was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four. This made him the first player since Bill Walton to score 20 points or more in two championship games in a row. After this amazing season, Joel decided to return to North Carolina for his senior year instead of entering the 2017 NBA draft early.

Senior Year (2017–18)

In his final year, Joel led the Tar Heels to the ACC tournament final. They lost in the second round of the 2018 NCAA tournament. Still, Joel had a great season, averaging 17.1 points and 3.2 assists per game. He also made 93 three-pointers.

He won the Dean Smith Most Valuable Player award for his team. He was also one of eight finalists for the James E. Sullivan Award. This award goes to the top amateur athlete in the United States. Joel was also chosen as a third-team All-American by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). This honor came after he was named a first-team All-ACC player in 2018.

Professional Basketball Career

South Bay Lakers (2018–2019)

After college, Joel Berry was not chosen in the 2018 NBA draft. However, he played for the Los Angeles Lakers' Summer League team. The Lakers then signed him to an NBA contract. On October 8, 2018, he was released by the Lakers after playing in three pre-season games. He then joined the South Bay Lakers, which is a team in the NBA G League connected to the Los Angeles Lakers. Joel had a season-ending injury in March 2019.

Greensboro Swarm (2019–2020)

On September 27, 2019, the Greensboro Swarm got the rights to Joel Berry in a trade. The Swarm is the NBA G League team for the Charlotte Hornets. On March 6, 2020, Joel scored a career-high 44 points in a game for the Greensboro Swarm.

Beşiktaş (2020–2021)

On November 24, 2020, Joel Berry signed with Beşiktaş, a professional basketball team in Turkey. On August 4, 2021, Joel was added to the Charlotte Hornets Summer League team. However, on August 24, 2021, Joel announced that he was retiring from professional basketball.

After Playing Basketball

On October 12, 2021, Joel Berry joined ACC Network. He became a college basketball analyst, sharing his thoughts on the game for the show Nothing but Net.

Career Statistics

Here are Joel Berry's statistics from his professional and college basketball careers.

Professional

College

See also

In Spanish: Joel Berry para niños