Joe Barry Carroll was the No. 1 pick in the 1980 NBA Draft, made the all-star team, had a stretch of four consecutive seasons where he averaged 21.7 points a game and retired in silence after a distinguished 11-year career during which he had a 17.7 points-per-game average.
Since retiring in 1991, Carroll, one of the more cerebral former athletes, has made his living as a financial adviser/planner for wealthy clients and six NFL players, putting his degree in economics from Purdue to good use. He managed his own money as a player—using no financial adviser. He received the Champion for Justice Award from the Atlanta Braves and Center for Civil and Human Rights for his work with the Georgia Innocence Project and authored Growing Up … In Words and Images, a coffee table book that features his writing and amazing artwork.
Carroll told Atlanta Black Star about how playing in the NBA helped make him successful off the court in business and in life:
