Last spring Austin Peay’s Terry Taylor became the most recent member of the 2000 PTS/1000 REB club. Another member of that exclusive club is Joe Barry Carroll, who finished his career at Purdue with 2175 PTS/1148 REB. After being named an All-American in 1979 & 1980 he was drafted 1st overall by Golden State and spent a decade in the NBA. He made the All-Rookie team in 1981 and the All-Star team in 1987. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Joe about scoring 52 PTS in 1 game and recording a triple-double. Today is Joe’s 63rd birthday so let us be the 1st to wish him a happy 1!
In the 1977 NCAA tourney you had a game-high 8 REB in a 3-PT loss to eventual national runner-up UNC (All-American Phil Ford scored 27 PTS): how close did you come to winning that game? It is difficult to recall the exact details but I recall being terribly disappointed.
In 1977 you had the 1st triple-double in Purdue history (16 PTS/16 REB/school-record 11 BLK): where does that rank among the best all-around games of your career? It is a great stat line and I am grateful for the distinction. As primarily an offensive player I lean towards my high-scoring games as my best performances. The thing about most of these games is that the accumulated statistics are what you discover after the fact: during the contest all that you can see are the inches before you.
In January of 1979 you had 27 PTS/11 REB and Arnette Hallman made a 25-foot off-balance jumper at the buzzer for a 2-PT upset of top-ranked Michigan State: did you think at that time that the Spartans were good enough to win the NCAA title a couple of months later? It was clear to everyone that they were a great team. That game was a college highlight for everyone, including them. Mackey Arena went CRAZY when that ball passed through the net at the end! We all still talk about it.
In the 1979 NIT title game Butch Carter made an off-balance jumper from the top of the key with 5 seconds left in a 1-PT win by the Hoosiers (the 1st-ever postseason meeting between the in-state rivals): where does that rank among the most devastating losses of your career? The victory was probably redemptive for IU during their controversial season, and it was heartbreaking for us because we had fought so hard to get there.
On March 1, 1980 you came out of your final home game with 49 seconds left, grabbed a box of roses that you had purchased before the game, and ran across the floor to give them to your mother: what did it mean to her, and what was the reaction like from the crowd? I still get mail about that night and it is a popular chapter in my memoir (https://joebarrycarroll.com/joe-barry-carroll-publishing/growing-up-in-words-and-images). As they say: “And the crowd went wild”. My family will never forget that moment. My mother passed away a few years ago so that is the kind of thing that offers comfort to a player: that he may have brought some joy to the people that mean the most to him.
Take me through the 1980 NCAA tourney:
You scored 17 PTS in a 5-PT loss to UCLA: what sort of a home-court advantage did you have (if any) at Market Square Arena? We were the surprise guest, both to ourselves and to others. Nobody expected us to make it that far but we did. It was sort of a blur. A team really improves their prospects during their 2nd time around. The 1st trip is overwhelming, especially back then when the coverage was so great. The loss was very difficult: you dream about this opportunity throughout your entire career…and then it was gone. The arena seating is different by the time you reach the Final 4: the crowd is pretty even so it was not necessarily home cooking.
You had 35 PTS/14-17 FG/12 REB/4 BLK in the consolation game against Iowa and finished your 6 games with 158 PTS: how were you able to dominate for 3 straight weeks against the best teams in the country? The urgency of now.
You graduated as the 32nd player in NCAA history with 2000+ PTS/1000+ REB, and you still hold school records with 1148 career REB/349 career BLK: did you realize at the time how prolific a player you were, and do you think that anyone will ever break your records? I sincerely appreciated the achievement, but am unsure if I realized the magnitude of any of it back then or that I would be chatting with anyone about it now.
You were a 2-time All-American: what did it mean to you to win such outstanding honors? I remain grateful.
In the summer of 1980 you were drafted 1st overall by Golden State and finished your 1st season by being named to the All-Rookie 1st-team: how were you able to make such a smooth transition from college to the NBA? It was not that smooth at all. I had some personal success along the way but my team struggled. In the NBA you are judged ultimately by the success of your team.
In March of 1983 you scored a career-high 52 PTS/22-32 FG in a win over Utah: was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? I had felt that before but never with that high of a scoring result.
In 1984 you left the Warriors to go play in Italy: why did you decide to do that, and what was the biggest difference between the NBA and the Italian League? Actually, the current tempo in the NBA resembles the Italian League back then. I was overwhelmed at times trying to keep up with the running/shooting, not to mention the huge cultural change.
In the 1987 All-Star Game you had 6 REB in a 5-PT OT win by the West: how on earth did you beat an East team with a starting 5 of Moses Malone/Larry Bird/Julius Erving/Michael Jordan/Dominique Wilkins?! Almost anything can happen during an All-Star Game: those were the best players in the world!
Take me through the 1987 playoffs:
You had 24 PTS/6 BLK in a 5-PT win at Utah in the decisive Game 5 of the Western Conference 1st round: what is the key to winning playoff games on the road? Blocking out the crowd and going deep within yourself.
In Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals Sleepy Floyd scored 51 PTS including a playoff-record 39 PTS in the 2nd half (29 PTS in the 4th quarter alone!) in an 8-PT win over the eventual-champion Lakers: did it reach a point where everyone just started passing him the ball and getting out of his way? Since Sleepy played the guard position he started out with possession of the ball and just kept it!
Your career 1.6 BPG is still in the top-50 all-time: what is the secret to being a great shot-blocker? You have to go where the action is going instead of where it was.
You currently work as an investment advisor/businessman: how do you like the job, and what do you hope to do in the future? I like problem-solving and providing solutions for families at their point of need: mostly I just like to help others.