Carter grew up in Mansfield, Texas, with three brothers.[2] When she was in elementary school, she idolized Allen Iverson.[3] Her father, Broderick, made her dribble a tennis ball in grass as a drill. "Me and my dad, we’d work out no matter what. Whether it was raining, snowing, pouring outside, it didn’t matter," she said. "He is my biggest supporter."[3][4]
She graduated in 2017 from Timberview High School in Arlington, Texas, as a McDonald’s All-American and the number six prospect in espnW’s HoopGurlz Top 100 with a 70-4 record over her junior and senior seasons. She was a member of the USA Basketball team that won gold in the summer of 2016 at the FIBA Americas U18 Championship in Valdivia, Chile. In November 2016, she signed a letter of intent with Texas A&M.[5][6] Since high school, she has had the nickname "Hollywood".[4]
Professional career
Since she turned 22 in 2020, she was eligible for the 2020 WNBA draft. On March 29, Carter declared for the draft, forgoing her senior season.[7] On April 17, she was drafted fourth overall by the Atlanta Dream. She became the highest drafted player in Texas A&M history.[8]
“I came in here with a chip on my shoulder,” Carter said, "even with being picked fourth, and I feel like that chip has been there my entire life." When Carter joined Atlanta, Coach Nicki Collen said Carter was misunderstood. Collen said. "I think she wants to win and she wants to be the best, but I also think she felt a little bit overshadowed by (the number one drafted player University of Oregon and New York Liberty star) Sabrina Ionescu in the draft, and it's very hard in that scenario."[4]
WNBA
2020
In her rookie season playing for the Atlanta Dream, she became the youngest player in WNBA history to score 30 points at 21 years and 266 days when she put up 35 against Seattle (8/6). She was considered the top candidate for the WNBA Rookie of the Year award until she sustained an ankle injury in the team's loss to the Connecticut Sun. Carter was sidelined for six games. She returned to the court on August 30 and scored 26 points in 26 minutes against Los Angeles. She scored at least 25 points on four occasions, becoming the fourth first-year player to score 25+ points in a game for Atlanta. At the end of the season, Carter was named to the 2020 WNBA All-Rookie Team.[9]
2021
In July 2021, the Dream suspended Carter indefinitely for "conduct detrimental to the team".[10] It was reported that before the suspension, Carter indicated she wanted to fight another Dream player who had asked her to improve her attitude during a game.[11] Carter did not play again for the Dream after the suspension, and the team traded her to the Los Angeles Sparks for the 2022 season.[10]
2022
In her season on the Sparks, Carter played in 24 games and started two of those.[10] She averaged "8.9 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 16.4 minutes per game" in that season.[12] In March 2023, the Sparks waived Carter and were obligated to pay her protected $86,701 salary under the terms of the contract.[13] The Los Angeles Times reported that Carter had been benched for "poor conduct" during the season.[12] After Derek Fisher was fired as the team's head coach during the 2022 season, the interim coach, Fred Williams, did not play Carter for four games due to a "coach's decision".[14]
2023
Carter did not play in the WNBA in the 2023 season.[10]
In August 2020, she agreed to terms with Turkey's Elazığ İl Özel İdarespor for her first overseas season.[15] She left the team early because she was homesick.[16]
In 2023 she played for Bursa in Turkey.[13] She also played in the WCBA for Heilongjiang and was the leagues leading scorer averaging 28.9 PPG and had the highest points in a single game with 51 pts, a record that has yet to be broken.
Carter signed with Wuhan Shengfan of the Women's Chinese Basketball Association for the 2024–2025 season.[17] She’s currently the leagues leading scorer for the 2024-2025 season and has 31.5 PPG and tied with Imani McGee Stafford for 44 pts in a single game however she still holds the single game scoring record of 51 pts in a single game.
