Rashad Dion McCants (born September 25, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player who has played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as well as overseas. He played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels, winning a National championship in his junior season.
McCants was an honor roll student at New Hampton.[2] He also won the New Hampshire Player of the Year Award in 2001 and 2002. And, as a senior, he was also named to the Parade All-American and McDonald's All-American Teams. He played in the McDonald's All-American Game with future Tar Heel teammates Raymond Felton and Sean May.[citation needed]
In the 2003–2004 season, McCants led the ACC in scoring with 20 points per game. With that effort, McCants helped lead UNC back into the NCAA Tournament with a sixth seed, where they lost in the second round to number three seeded Texas. He was the leading vote-getter on the All-ACC First Team as a sophomore, and was named a third-team All-American.[citation needed]
With freshman Marvin Williams joining the squad for the 2004–2005 season, the junior class led by preseason Wooden Award candidates in McCants, May, and Felton gave UNC a high ranking in all preseason polls and the team was seen as one of the favorites to win the NCAA Tournament. After going 33–4 and winning the ACC regular season, McCants' 16.4 points per game helped secure UNC one of the four number one seeds in the NCAA Tournament. UNC cruised to the championship game, where McCants helped the Tar Heels defeat the Illinois Fighting Illini, 75–70.[3]
McCants' three years at Chapel Hill were not without controversy. In an interview with local television station WRAL, McCants compared UNC to a prison, stating, "You're not allowed to say certain things, but once you get out of jail, you're free. (I'm) in my sentence, and I'm doing my time."[4][5]
McCants scored 1,721 points and made 221 three-pointers during his career at North Carolina.[6]
Professional career
After winning the championship, McCants declared his eligibility for the 2005 NBA draft, and was selected 14th overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves. His college teammates, Marvin Williams, Raymond Felton, and Sean May were also selected in the draft. During his first two years as a pro, McCants was bothered by injuries and did not play up to the expectations of fans. He had a lot of expectations going into the 2007–08 season, and on a young Timberwolves squad, he started the season as a rotation regular, and broke into the starting lineup halfway through the season.
As of January 2008, Rashad had posted career-highs through his third season, with 34 points against the Denver Nuggets on January 4, 2008,[7] 8 rebounds against the Miami Heat on January 8,[8] 4 steals against the Seattle SuperSonics on December 29, 2007,[8] and getting 6 assists five times.[8] On December 26, 2008, he hit a career-high 7 three-pointers in a Wolves win over the New York Knicks.[9]
On February 19, 2009, McCants was sent to the Sacramento Kings along with Calvin Booth for Shelden Williams and Bobby Brown.[10] McCants then signed with the Houston Rockets in September 2009,[11] but had his contract retracted on the second day of the training camp. The Rockets General Manager said McCants presented with an abdomen problem and would not be able to participate in the camp, though he also said he would still consider McCants down the track once healthy.[citation needed]
In the summer of 2010, he was scheduled to join the Cleveland Cavaliers' NBA Summer League team. However, he did not report to the team for personal reasons.[12]
In October 2010 the Dallas Mavericks signed McCants to their training camp roster. However, he was released only after a few days. He was then signed by the Mavericks' NBA Development League associate, the Texas Legends.
In 2012, the Powerade Tigers of the Philippine Basketball Association acquired him as their import for the Governors Cup. However, despite playing his usual game, he was not able to help the Tigers win their first two games and was released afterwards.
On July 13, 2012, McCants signed with the French club Strasbourg IG.[13] On August 24, 2012, he parted ways with Strasbourg before appearing in a game for them.[14] On November 19, 2012, he signed with the Foshan Long Lions of China.[15] On January 10, 2013, he was waived by the Foshan.[16]
On April 30, 2017, McCants was selected as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 BIG3 Draft by Trilogy.[23] On August 26, 2017, Trilogy won the first-ever Big3 League Championship. McCants scored 22 points on 55% shooting and was named Championship MVP.[24]
In June 2008, McCants began dating reality television star Khloe Kardashian. The two were introduced by the National Football League player Reggie Bush who had been dating her sister Kim at the time.[27] The relationship ended after seven months, in late January 2009, reportedly due to McCants's infidelity.[28] He also made a brief guest appearance on her reality show, Keeping Up with the Kardashians, during season 3 (episode 7). Eight years later, speaking with a Charlotte Observer reporter while looking back on his career in the NBA, McCants stated that the highly publicized relationship with Khloe Kardashian was the "biggest regret" because it "gave people an opportunity to doubt his commitment to the NBA", adding: "Without that situation in play, I’m a $60-70 million player. Easily."[29]
McCants was one of the victims of professional scam artist/fraudster Peggy Ann Fulford (Peggy King, Peggy Williams, Peggy Ann Barard, etc.), losing $200,000, amongst the $5.79million in total she stole from him, Ricky Williams, Travis Best, Dennis Rodman, Lex Hilliard and others.[30] Fulford, who was indicted by the FBI in December 2016, continued her criminal activity until sentenced in February 2018 to 10 years in prison and full financial restitution to her victims.[30]
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↑ Parsons, Keith (October 19, 2004). "McCants: 'I love North Carolina'". Associated Press. Archived from the original on August 8, 2014. Retrieved July 30, 2014. Original AP wire title: "McCants Says He Likes Being at Carolina"
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