The Philadelphia 76ers have had no shortage of highly touted prospects over the years. Since getting a lengthy taste of what it felt like in the league’s least enviable plane to reside — the middle bracket or basketball purgatory, the franchise made a drastic change in philosophy in the early to middle part of the previous decade.
With Sam Hinkie manning the franchise, the 76ers infamously went through The Process — a fancy and formal way to refer to the audacious tank job they embraced for three to four years. Philly unofficially commenced that endeavor in 2013, the year they barely missed the postseason after going as far being a single win away from a surprise Conference Finals berth in 2012.
In 2013, the 76ers selected Michael Carter-Williams with the 11th overall pick. The Syracuse standout quickly shone in his rookie campaign, bagging the Rookie of the Year award over Victor Oladipo, who went on to become an All-Star twice.
Former 76ers standout Michael Carter-Williams has made a mind-boggling career shift
MCW, however peaked in his rookie year. Midway through his second season with the 76ers, he was traded to the Bucks, and since then, he bounced around the league, suiting up for the Bulls, Hornets, Rockets, and Magic.
The defensive-minded guard last suited up for Orlando in the 2022-23 season, albeit for a cameo season amounting to four games. He then went to the G-League before disclosing that he had retired from professional basketball last year.
However, it seems like Carter-Williams has found a redirection. As initially reported by ESPN’s Andreas Hale, the former ROTY awardee is slated to make his amateur boxing debut next month in New York against 36-year-old boxer Sam Khativ.
This is clearly an unprecedented move. At 33 years of age, not only is he starting late in his boxing venture, but his shift from basketball to boxing is a pretty drastic one. While former NBA players jumping onto another sport professionally is not new (see: Olympian Chase Budinger, who hopped from basketball to beach volleyball), the dynamics between boxing and basketball are as different as they can be.
Carter-Williams was one of the biggest casualties of the NBA’s revolution into a league where three-point shooting is of paramount importance. Still it is nice to see the former Philadelphia 76ers star venture into another sport and continue his professional sports career as a boxer.