Jabari Parker

At 29 years old, Jabari Parker has this physical status:

Jabari Ali Parker (born March 15, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

He was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks with the second overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft.

After one season of playing for Duke University, he halted his college career.

Parker was a standout high school star who helped his team win four straight state championships for Simeon Career Academy, and was named National High School Player of the Year by Gatorade and McDonald.

He was named a consensus first-team All-American, the USBWA National Freshman of the Year, and runner-up for the John R. Wooden Award in his freshman year with the Duke Blue Devils.

Parker's uncle, Sonny Parker, is the son of former NBA player Sonny Parker.

Early life

Parker was born and raised in Chicago's South Shore neighborhood. Since 1990, Parker's father, Sonny, has been serving hundreds of Chicago metropolitan area children as the youth foundation's director. Parker played basketball in one of his father's many leagues, but his father has never coached one of his teams. He honed his basketball skills with his brother Christian on the basketball court at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) in the Hyde Park neighborhood in order to avoid the dangers of urban playgrounds. His basketball skills were outstanding to those of the fifth-graders he competed with, and he competed in middle school leagues as a fifth grader. Jay Parker, Jabari's uncle, has been assisting him in his development, beginning in third grade and Jay Parker was in fifth place. At the church, Jabari and Christian played basketball all night long. Jabari was a member of the eighth grade but was unable to participate until fifth grade due to the school district's insurance policy. He had five Division I scholarship offers as a 6-foot (1.83 m) guard in fifth grade. He travelled Simeon for a day and scrimmaged with Derrick Rose in sixth grade, when he stood at 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m). Parker was a student at the University of Robert A. Parker was a student at the University of Virginia. Simeon Career Academy was Black Magnet Academy's first choice, just like Rose, Nick Anderson, Ben Wilson, Bobby Simmons, and Deon Thomas before him. Despite the fact that Parker has two older sisters who also attended Simeon, his decision was based on a nimble aim of winning the most championships. "I selected Simeon because I knew it would be possible to win four state championships," Parker said in the Chicago Tribune. He received a National Basketball Players Association Top 100 Camp invite after finishing middle school, which he accepted. He stood at 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 meters) at this time.

Personal life

Parker is of Tongan and African American descent. Folola "Lola" Finau-Parker and Sonny Parker are his parents. Sonny, a Chicago native, spent with the Texas A&M Aggies before being a 1976 NBA Draft first round pick (17th overall) by the Golden State Warriors. He appeared in the NBA for six seasons. Sonny was a former Washington Huskies men's basketball head coach Lorenzo Romar, who was a teammate of former Washington Huskies men's basketball head coach Lorenzo Romar. He suffered with a kidney disease that necessitates dialysis in 2013, making it impossible for him to attend Jabari's games. Lola, a Polynesian native of Tonga, is a member of the LDS Church and immigrated to Salt Lake City at the age of three. Her grandfather was the second Tongan baptized by the LDS Church missionaries. Many of Lola's cousins are National Football League players, including Harvey Unga, Haloti Ngata, and Tony Moeaki, as well as Tony Moeaki, one of her first cousins who was missing, Tony Finau, made his PGA Tour debut in October 2014. When she was a student at Brigham Young University and playing for the Warriors, her parents met in a mall. Sonny lost his tickets to his game after assisting him in finding a dress shirt. They married and settled in Chicago after he retired and she served her mission. The family lives in the South Shore community, where his parents settled after marrying and has turned down two movie offers.

Parker has six siblings. Darryl and Christian, his older brothers, are named Darryl and Christian, while his older sisters are named Iman and Tilah. Darryl spent two years with the Oregon Ducks basketball team, beginning with the team's participation in the 1995 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. Christian played basketball for Brigham Young University-Hawaii.

Jabari grew up (and remains) a regular attender of the LDS Church. According to ESPN, Parker attended seminary two mornings a week a week, and three days a week at Simeon Career Academy. He became a priest on his sixteenth birthday (as is customary in his faith). Both the priest and the weekly sacrament have served baptisms and administered the sacrament. In addition, he and his bishop went on vacation with his bishop on monthly visits to help the sick, the homeless, and the elderly.

Parker worked with basketball coach Tim Grover. Rather than playing pick-up games, Jabari prefers individual training sessions with his brother, Darryl. ESPN said he had a 3.4 grade point average in his sophomore year. His GPA was 3.7 percent at the beginning of his junior year's first semester. His GPA was 3.63 percent, placing him 18th in his class of 377, as the principal-appointed president of student representatives to the local school council, a youth basketball coach, and a volunteer for Operation PUSH, The Salvation Army, and the New Beginnings Church were among his extracurricular activities. He was known for carrying a backpack filled with basketball equipment, an iPod, and a copy of the Book of Mormon.

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High school career

Parker was the first freshman to join the Simeon varsity team in school history. He averaged 19.3 points per game, 5.0 rebounds per game, and 3.0 assists per game over the course of the season, and his team won the IHSA Class 4A state championship with a 25–9 record. He had received numerous scholarship offers by the end of the season, including those from Illinois, Kansas, DePaul, Pittsburgh, Northwestern, Florida, Washington, Washington, and Oregon State, as well as major interest from Kentucky, Duke and North Carolina. He was named the ESPN HS 2010 Freshman of the Year. He was a member of the 2009-10 Boys Basketball All-American Team selection for MaxPreps.com.

Parker, a sophomore, helped his team finish the season in the top five nationally. He was averaging 15.3 points and 5.9 rebounds per game last season, while his team captured the IHSA Class 4A state championship with a 30–2 record. He received second-team All-State recognition from the Chicago Tribune, while the Chicago Sun-Times named him as a first-team selection with Ryan Boatright, Tracy Abrams, David Sobolewski, and Frank Kaminsky. These five and Wayne Blackshear, Johnny Hill, Mike Shaw, Nnanna Egwu, Sam Thompson, Anthony Davis, and Mycheal Henry were among the 12-man Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Class 3A/4A boys' all-state first team. He was named the ESPN HS 2011 Sophomore of the Year in 2011. He was a member of MaxPreps.com's first squad, 2010-11 Boys Basketball Sophomore All-American Team selection.

Parker was one of a handful of juniors selected to the 2011 Nike World Challenge, where he earned tournament MVP awards during his junior year.

Parker set a Simeon single-game scoring record in 21 minutes of action, along with 16 rebounds and six blocked shots against Perspectives High School. He received offers from Duke, Kansas, BYU, Kentucky, UNC, and others as a high school freshman. Parker and Simeon won the Public League championship on February 17, beating Curie Metropolitan High School 53-49. Both the semifinals and finals were shown live on ESPN3. Coaches Izzo, Krzyzewski, Matta, and Weber, as well as Mayor Emanuel and cadres of their employees were among those in attendance for the IHSA sectional semifinal against Young, which was won by Simeon 52–42, in which Parker led the way with 18 points and six rebounds. Parker said in the days leading up to the state final four that, although Coach Weber had been fired, he remained interested in Illinois and other in-state programs, such as DePaul and Northwestern. Parker scored 15 points in the championship game, 50–48 win over Proviso East High School, which culminated in a 33–1 junior year record for Simeon. On ESPN3, the state semifinals and the finals were shown live on ESPN3. Parker averaged 19.5 points, 8.9 rebounds, 3.9 blocks, and 1.4 steals per game, or 20.4 points, 9.2 rebounds, 3.3 blocks, and 1.5 steals per game, depending on the source, while shooting 56% from the field, 39 percent from the free-throw line, and 73% from the free-throw line for the season. Following the season, he appeared in a Sports Illustrated May cover story "The Best High School Basketball Player Since LeBron James is..."Jabari Parker's Religion is More Important To Him Than Instant NBA Stardom: His Faith" is his nickname. The tale told his humility while he said he is divided on his decision to serve as an LDS Church missionary. Parker revealed that he planned to reduce his list of potential schools to a five-by-the-year list so he could plan official visits.

Parker received many awards for his efforts during his junior year. He was welcomed by the Chicago Sun-Times to the Class 4A All-State first team, along with Jahlil Okafor, Keith Carter, Darius Paul, and Fred VanVleet. The Associated Press also selected him as the first team (unanimous) All-State pick, as well as VanVleet, Carter, Taylor, and Malcolm Hill. Carter, Aaron Simpson, Taylor, and VanVleet were among the Chicago Tribune's first teams All-State. He was named the Illinois boys' basketball Gatorade Player of the Year for 2012. He was the first non-senior honoree in Illinois Mr. Basketball's 32-year history, which is a Chicago Tribune honor given to him in conjunction with the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association. He was announced as the winner of the national boys' basketball Gatorade Player of the Year on April 12, which was gifted to him by ex-NBA player Alonzo Mourning, who welcomed him at his school in a special assembly. Parker was the fourth junior to win the competition (LeBron James, Greg Oden, and Brandon Knight). In ESPN HS's Mr. Basketball USA poll, Parker came in second second to Shabazz Muhammad. They were the only two names to appear on every ballot. However, Parker was selected as both the ESPN National Junior of the Year and the MaxPreps.com National Junior of the Year. He was selected by ESPN HS as a first team for ESPN HS boys' high school basketball. USA Today selected him as the first team All-USA pick with the same four players. Anderson, Muhammad, Noel, and Isaiah Austin were among SLAM Magazine's first team members.

Parker was the country's consensus number one player until he was forced to miss several games during the 2012 FIBA Under-17 World Championship. Parker was one of ten preseason All-USA picks for USA Today, and his team was ranked No. 98. MaxPreps.com has 1 preseason throughout the country. He signed up for Duke on December 20, 2012.

Parker and Simeon played in six showcase games that necessitated travel outside of the area over the course of his senior season. Three of the showcase games were shown nationally on one of the ESPN networks.

Simeon defeated Stevenson High School in the IHSA Class 4A state championship for the fourth straight IHSA state championship, beating Manual High School's IHSA record of four consecutive IHSA basketball championships. Parker, who scored 20 points and had 8 rebounds, became the second player (Sergio McClain) in IHSA history to start for four straight state basketball champions. Simeon set a new record of 30-3.

Several more awards followed his senior year's success. Parker was selected by USA Basketball as a member of the 2013 USA Junior National Select Team for the 2013 Nike Hoop Summit in the Rose Garden on April 20, 2013. Parker was named by the Chicago Sun-Times as one of the first teams in the 2013 All-Public League in 2013. Parker was chosen to compete in the Jordan Brand Classic at the Barclays Center on the same day. Parker was named "the McDonald's All-American" by the year's best, demonstrates leadership, and exemplifies the virtues of being a student-athlete in both the classroom and the community on March 18, the award. Parker was named the Gatorade Illinois Boys Basketball Player of the Year on March 21, and on March 25, he renamed Illinois Mr. Basketball. He received another National Player of the Year award on April 9, this time by MaxPreps.com. He was voted by USA Today on April 17, and on May 18, he was named a 2013 first-team Parade All-American.

Parker scored 10 points on 4-for-13 shooting, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks during his McDonald's All-Star game in his hometown, contributing to a 110–99 victory. Parker and Julius Randle co-MVP and Julius Randle co-MVP at the Barclays Center on April 13. He had 16 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 assists in the West team's 102-98 victory. Parker had a team-high 22 points and 7 rebounds as the US Junior National Select Team was defeated 112-98 by the World Select team at the Nike Hoop Summit in Portland, Oregon, on April 20.

According to Rivals, Parker finished his high school career as the fourth ranked player in the class of 2013, behind Wiggins, Randle, and Aaron Gordon.

College career

Parker was a true freshman starter for the 2013-14 Blue Devils, with a number that had not been worn at Duke before. Sporting News and USA Today's preseason first team rankings, as well as being named the preseason ACC Rookie of the Year, were among the year's preseason first team nominees. Parker was also one of nine new men named to the 50-man Wooden Award preseason watchlist.

Parker debuted against Duke on November 8 with 22 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 block, his fifth freshman to play for the university for the first time in history (along with Hood, Cook, and Sulaimon). Parker received his first ACC Rookie of the Week award on November 11 for his efforts. On November 13, Parker received his second Sports Illustrated cover as part of a four-version series of regional covers depicting college basketball's greatest rivalries on the College Basketball Preview Issue. Parker's hometown United Center in his hometown United Center on November 12 recorded 27 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks, and 1 block in a losing effort against Wiggins' Kansas Jayhawks. Parker scored 23 against NC State on January 18, tying him for the most 20-point games by a Duke freshman. Parker won his 900th game at Duke on January 25, scoring 14 points, 3 steals, and 14 rebounds against Florida State. Parker scored a career high 30 points in the second Carolina–Duke rivalry game of the season on March 8. In the tenth ACC rookie of the week honor in the final week of the regular season, he received a record-tying (Kenny Anderson and Tyler Hansbrough).

Parker gave his 20-point performance in the semifinals of the 2014 ACC men's basketball tournament against NC State on March 15, his 17th appearance in the tournament and vaulted him to second position, ahead of Marbury. Parker's 18th 20-point game against Virginia on March 16, which was one shy of Anderson's ACC freshman record. Parker and the team were ranked No. Among the finalists in the annual poll. In the first round of the NCAA tournament, three of the Midwest players ended the season on the season. No. 3 lost in the first round. 14 Mercer. Parker set a new freshman record (19.1) and was the first freshman to lead the team in both scoring and rebounding.

Parker's freshman year was lauded for his outstanding results. He was unanimously selected to both the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association (ACSMA) First Team and the Coaches All-ACC Freshman Team. He was also selected to the coach's All-ACC Basketball first team with the most points. Parker was named ACC Freshman of the Year by 72 percent of 77 votes and finished second in the ACC Player of the Year award, behind Warren 48–25. Parker was a first-team pick by The Associated Press, Sports Illustrated, Bleacher Report, The United States Basketball Writers Association (NABC), and USA Today. Parker was named to the 2013 National Freshman All-American and was named in the USBWA National Freshman of the Year. He was selected to the first team of the All-ACC tournament team. Parker was also named in the John R. Wooden Award for his All-American Team.

Professional career

In an exclusive autobiographical story in Sports Illustrated, Parker announced for the 2014 NBA draft on April 17. He signed with sports agent Rich Paul, according to other reports, like SLAM Magazine, but other reports, including B. J. Armstrong, suggest he signed with B. J. Armstrong. Parker has declined to participate in the NBA Draft Combine. Parker was not chosen no. 26 on June 26, but not indefinite. The Milwaukee Bucks finished second overall. Parker did a shoe endorsement deal with the Jordan Brand right before the draft was published.

Parker joined the Bucks in the NBA Summer League on July 9, 2014, and stayed with them until the 2014 NBA Summer League.

Parker made his NBA debut in the Bucks' season opener against the Charlotte Hornets on October 29, 2014. In an 108-106 overtime loss, he saw 8 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 steal in fewer than 37 minutes as a starter. He had 11 points and ten rebounds against the Philadelphia 76ers two nights later in his first home game. In a triple-overtime victory over the Brooklyn Nets on November 19, he scored a season-high 23 points. Parker was selected as the Month's Rookie of the Month for October-November. Parker sustained a season-ending injury while playing his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) against the Phoenix Suns on December 15, causing him to miss a game.

Parker's injury suffered well into the 2015–16 NBA season. In the fifth game of the season for the Bucks, he returned to action on November 4 against the Philadelphia 76ers, but he struggled, scoring just two points in 16 minutes as a starter. He was drained on the second of back-to-back games as his workload climbed. Despite this, he suffered a sprain in his right mid-foot causing him to miss several games. He only missed one game. He began to come off the bench each week, while O. J. Mayo took his starting position. Parker's 19-point, 7-rebound, 2-steal performance against the Golden State Warriors on December 12, aided in the breaking of their 24-game winning streak. On January 27, 2016, he was selected to the 2016 NBA All-Star Game Weekend Rising Stars Challenge team. In a loss to the Charlotte Hornets on February 19, he tied his career high with 23 points. In a 117–109 double-overtime victory over the Atlanta Hawks, he surpassed that total the following night, with career highs of 28 points and 13 rebounds. Parker defeated the Houston Rockets 128-121, setting a new career high of 36 points on February 29.

Parker was one assist and one field goal shy of his first NBA triple-double against the Atlanta Hawks on January 15, 2017. Parker was ruled out of the remainder of the 2016–17 season after an MRI revealed a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee. At 12 months, the recovery and rehabilitation process was estimated. It was his second time he sustained the same knee in the same leg, the first having occurred in December 2014. He averaged 20.1 points (2nd on team), 6.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.0 steals in 33.9 minutes, the first half of the season.

Parker was assigned by the Bucks to the Wisconsin Herd, a NBA G League affiliate, so he could practice while recovering from injury. Parker was recalled by the Bucks on December 19, following two workouts with the Herd.

In a 92-90 victory over the New York Knicks on February 2, 2018, Parker made his first appearance for the Bucks since February 9, 2017. As a reserve, he fired 4 of 7 shots in less than 15 minutes. In a 107–104 loss to the Washington Wizards on February 27, 2018, he scored a season-high 19 points. In a 127-120 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on March 21, 2018, he scored a season-high 20 points in 30 minutes (the most he'd played since rejoining the team). In an overtime loss to the Denver Nuggets on April 1, he recorded a season-high 35 points as well as ten rebounds. It was the first time Parker played more than a few seconds over his 30-minute cap since returning to the lineup. The Bucks made Parker a qualifying bid during the 2017–18 NBA season, giving them the ability to match an offer sheet within 48 hours. The Bucks retracted the qualifying bid, allowing Parker and the Chicago Bulls to decide on a deal.

Parker signed a two-year, $40 million contract with the Chicago Bulls on July 14, 2018. With 15 points and 5 rebounds off the bench against the Philadelphia 76ers, he made his Bulls debut on October 18 with 15 points and 5 rebounds off the bench. Against the Dallas Mavericks, he scored a season-high 20 points off the bench four days later. Parker scored 20 points and 13 rebounds against the Phoenix Suns on November 21, but his eight assists fell short of his first career triple-double. The Bulls cut Parker from their rotation in early December, shortly after Jim Boylen took over the lead coaching role from Fred Hoiberg, and they are no longer giving him regular minutes. Bobby Portis returned to the lineup on December 10, just around the time he had been out nearly seven weeks. Parker led the Brooklyn Nets to 22 points on January 29.

Parker was traded to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Otto Porter on February 6, 2019. Parker posted career highs with 14 rebounds against the Brooklyn Nets on February 27, despite the fact that he didn't have a career high. On March 27, the Phoenix Suns recorded 15 rebounds and 15 rebounds. On what would have been Parker's second year with the team, the team declined Parker's second year on the job, which would have earned Parker $20 million.

Parker was signed with the Atlanta Hawks on July 11, 2019.

Parker will be out at least two weeks with a shoulder injury on January 7, 2020.

Parker was traded to the Sacramento Kings on February 6, 2020. After playing 27 minutes in 9 games, he was suspended by the Kings on March 25, 2021, according to the King.

Parker signed with the Boston Celtics on April 16, 2021. Parker scored 11 points on 5-6 shooting in 16 minutes on his first with the Celtics. In 4 of the remaining 11 games, he played later. He averaged 8.5 points on 14.8 minutes per game in the Celtics' first round loss to the Brooklyn Nets.

Parker was waived by the Celtics on October 17, 2021, but three days later, the Celtics re-signed him to a renegotiated contract after clearing waivers. He was waived again on January 7, 2022, and as of the start of the 2022 traning camp (September 27), he remained a free agent.

National team career

Parker was one of the 18 participants in the 2011–12 USA Developmental National Team mini-camp, giving him an automatic invitation to the FIBA U16 competition in Colorado Springs, Colorado, from June 10 to 18, 2011. Parker was one of four Chicago products to break out from the 27-man tryouts as part of the 12-man team. He was MVP of the 2011 FIBA Americas U16 Championship, where Team USA received a gold medal. The United States qualified for the 2012 FIBA U17 World Championship in the United States. In each outing, the team, which was coached by Don Showalter of Mid-Prairie High School, scored over 100 points. Parker scored 27 points in a single game for the United States. Based on his FIBA Americas success, he was named Male Athlete of the Year in December 2011, making him the youngest champion ever. While on the stage to accept the mayor's award, he says he told the mayor, "I hope they don't boo me."

He was selected for the USA team that competed in the 2012 FIBA Under-17 World Championship in Kaunas, Lithuania, from June 29 to July 8, 2012, alongside Simeon teammate Kendrick Nunn and Whitney Young rival Okafor. Parker earned the gold medal, but the team lost some games, including the semifinal, due to an ankle injury.

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