Anthony Michael Parker (born June 19, 1975) is an American professional basketball executive who is the general manager of the Orlando Magic and former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as well as in Italy and Israel.
Prior to graduating from Bradley University with a major in liberal arts, he entered the 1997 NBA draft and played briefly in the NBA before plying his trade in Europe. There, Parker spent five seasons with the Israeli Super League basketball club Maccabi Tel Aviv and one season with the Italian Serie A club Lottomatica Roma. With Maccabi he won five Israeli Super League national championships, five Israeli National Cups, three European-wide titles (two EuroLeague Basketball titles, in 2004 and 2005, and the FIBA SuproLeague title in 2001), and was voted two consecutive times EuroLeague MVP. He was also named the 2004 Israeli Basketball Premier League MVP.
After returning to the NBA as a free agent in 2006, Parker was the Toronto Raptors' starting shooting guard. In his first season with the Raptors, Parker helped the team clinch their first-ever division title, first NBA playoffs berth in five years, and best regular-season record in franchise history. He helped the Raptors reach the playoffs again in the 2007–08 season, before becoming a free agent in 2009.
On June 27, 2012, Anthony Parker retired after playing nine seasons in the NBA, five seasons in Israel, and one season in Italy."Anthony Parker retires after 9 years in NBA, 6 in Israel", fearthesword.com, accessed June 27, 2012. He then became a scout for the Orlando Magic from 2012 to 2017. In 2017, he became the general manager of the Lakeland Magic, the Orlando Magic's NBA G League developmental team. In 2021, he was moved to Orlando as an assistant general manager. In 2023, he was promoted to General Manager of the Magic.
Biography
Early basketball career Parker started out playing high school basketball at Naperville Central High School.Anthony Parker, interbasket.net, accessed April 25, 2010. He then played college basketball at Bradley University where he established himself as a top player, averaging 18.9 points per game (ppg) and shooting 42% from the three-point line in his third season,Anthony Parker Statistics, basketball-reference.com, accessed May 10, 2010. earning the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Most Valuable Player and All-MVC first team honors in the same season.NBA Players – Anthony Parker, hoopshype.com, accessed April 26, 2007. His outstanding performances for the Braves ensured that he became one of 15 players honored in Bradley's All-Century basketball team named in 2003.Reynods, Dave, Bradley All-Century Team , pjstar.com, accessed April 26, 2007. Academically, Parker also excelled. He majored in chemistry before switching to liberal arts and sciences in his senior year, and earned two Major Robert H. Lawrence Jr. Scholarships while at Bradley.Anthony Parker Info Page – Bio , nba.com, accessed April 25, 2007.
Parker entered the 1997 NBA draft after four years at Bradley and was selected 21st overall by the New Jersey Nets, but he was immediately traded to the Philadelphia 76ers in a multi-player trade.Anthony Parker , sportsnet.ca, accessed April 25, 2007. In his two seasons with the 76ers, Parker was largely plagued by injury and played in only 39 regular season games, averaging just over five minutes a game and totaling 74 points and 26 rebounds.Anthony Parker Info Page – Career statistics and Totals , nba.com, accessed May 15, 2010. He was subsequently traded together with Harvey Grant to the Orlando Magic for Billy Owens before the 1999–2000 season. Parker again struggled at Orlando, playing only 16 games with modest averages of 3.6 ppg and 1.7 rebounds per game (rpg) before being released in January 2000. He finished the remainder of the season with the Quad City Thunder of the Continental Basketball Association where he averaged 11.5 points in 26 games.
European career Disappointed in his failure to make a breakthrough in the NBA, Parker turned to Europe to resurrect his basketball career, intending to return to the NBA after a good season with a European club.Grange, Michael, "Parker turning heads in playoff debut", The Globe and Mail, April 25, 2007. Eventually, he moved to Israel in the 2000–01 season, where he was signed by the Israeli EuroLeague powerhouse Maccabi Tel Aviv. Initially, Parker and his wife were intimidated by the occasional bomb attacks in the city, but they soon settled in and Parker was able to focus on his basketball career.
Within his first season with his new club, he became one of their most pivotal players. Parker was signed to fill the void left by Doron Sheffer's retirement at the shooting guard position, but ended up featuring as both a scorer and play-maker for Maccabi. He immediately brought to the team his ability to score, rebound, block shots, and even entertain the crowds with slam dunks. In Parker's inaugural season, Maccabi won the Israeli domestic championship and the Israeli National Cup, as well as the FIBA SuproLeague Cup.
He continued his fine form for the club in the 2001–02 season, averaging 16.4 points per game and 5.2 rebounds per gamePARKER, ANTHONY, euroleague.net, accessed April 26, 2007. as Maccabi again won both domestic titles and even reached the Euroleague 2001–02 Final Four.
Parker left Israel in 2002, and in January 2003 moved to Italy, where he signed with Virtus Roma, playing in 27 Italian Serie A league games and averaging 14.5 points per game and 5.6 rebounds per game.
However, half a year later Parker longed a return to Israel, a country he had grown to love. Back with Maccabi, he helped his team accomplish two more Triple Crowns by winning the Israeli domestic championship, the Israeli National Cup, and the EuroLeague championship in both 2004 and 2005.Raptors Sign Free Agent Anthony Parker, nba.com/raptors, accessed April 25, 2007. In the process, he was named the Israeli Basketball Super League MVP and the EuroLeague Final Four MVP of the Euroleague 2003–04 season, as well as the EuroLeague MVP and first-team All-EuroLeague in the Euroleague 2004–05 season.Maccabi Elite Tel Aviv Basketball Club , accessed April 26, 2007.
The 2004–05 season also proved to be a watershed season for Parker, as he averaged career-highs of 18.0 points per game, 5.3 rebounds per game, and 3.6 assists per game.PARKER, ANTHONY, euroleague.net, accessed April 27, 2007.
In his final season with Maccabi, he led the team to another domestic double, but in the Euroleague 2005–06 season's championship game, Maccabi was defeated 73–69 by CSKA Moscow. For his efforts, Parker was named EuroLeague MVP and first team All-EuroLeague for the second consecutive time. After six years of success in Europe however, Parker dreamed of returning to the NBA. Overall, he averaged 13.6 points per game, 4.8 rebounds per game and 1.8 steals per game in his Israeli league career, while averaging 15.8 points per game, 5.7 rebounds per game and 1.6 steals per game in the EuroLeague. He made the 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors list in 2008, and the EuroLeague 2000–10 All-Decade Team in 2010.50 Greatest Contributors List , euroleague.net, accessed June 6, 2010.Fans, media chose decade's best!, euroleague.net, accessed June 6, 2010.
Parker's experience playing in Israel left a positive impression upon him. He went on to wear jersey number 18 for both Toronto and Cleveland, explaining that: "I played in Israel before I came back to the NBA, and I had such a great time... two of my sons were born while I was playing overseas and one was actually born in Israel. And I just had such a great experience that I wanted to take something from that experience. The number 18, in Judaism, it means 'chai'... and it's the symbol for life and good fortune in Judaism. And I thought that was something to take away from Israel and let them know I'm still representing them."Shultz, J.D., "How Did the Cavaliers Choose Their Jersey Numbers?" , theclevelandfan.com, February 3, 2010, accessed February 8, 2010.
Return to the NBA
Toronto Raptors
In October 2005, during a pre-season friendly representing Maccabi against the Toronto Raptors organized by then Israeli Consul-General Cobie Brosh, Parker hit the game-winning shot with less than a second remaining to lead Maccabi to a 105–103 win at the Air Canada Centre. This gave the Raptors fans and management a glimpse of his abilities and in July 2006, Parker was officially signed by Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo as a free agent as part of a massive revamp of the 2006–07 Toronto team. He was signed for approximately US$12 million over three years, joining recent European veteran acquisitions Jorge Garbajosa and José Calderón on the team. Adopting a #18 jersey, Parker quickly established himself as the starting shooting guard for Toronto and a well-respected three-point shooter in the NBA, ranking fourth in the league for three-point field goal percentage by the end of the regular season.2006–07 THREE POINT LEADERS: 3-POINT FG PERCENTAGE , nba.com, accessed April 26, 2007. Overall, in his first season with Toronto, he averaged 12.4 ppg, 3.9 rpg, and 2.1 apg, leading his team in three-point field goal percentage and free throw percentage. Parker's defensive and offensive versatility were credited as instrumental in helping the Raptors clinch their first-ever division title, first NBA playoffs berth in five years, as well as best regular-season record in franchise history.Ulmer, Mark, "The One They Needed", nba.com/raptors, April 24, 2007, accessed April 27, 2007.
In the first round of the 2007 NBA Playoffs, Parker was chosen to defend New Jersey Net and former Toronto favorite Vince Carter. Parker was effective in shutting down Carter, restricting him to 13-for-43 shooting in the first two games. However, the Raptors were eliminated by the Nets after Game 6.Raptors Post Up, May 4, 2007, accessed May 31, 2007.
On April 4, 2007, the NBA also announced that Parker had been selected by a five-member panel of former players as the divisional winner of 2006–07 NBA Sportsmanship Award."Anthony Parker Receives Atlantic Division Sportsmanship Award", nba.com/raptors, April 4, 2007, accessed April 27, 2007. The annual award reflects the ideals of sportsmanship in amateur and professional basketball.
In the 2007–08 season, Parker remained—despite the signing of Miami's Jason Kapono—the starting shooting guard for the Raptors, with rookie Jamario Moon completing the wing positions. In a season that was fraught with lengthy injuries to a number of his teammates (such as T. J. Ford and Chris Bosh), he managed to play in all 82 regular season games and ensured that Toronto made the 2008 NBA Playoffs, albeit as the sixth seed. However, the Raptors were eliminated in the first round by the Orlando Magic in five games.Smith, Doug, "Season over for deflated Raptors", thestar.com, April 29, 2008, accessed April 30, 2008. Parker was later named by ESPN as one of the best Euroleague players to have graced the NBA.Whittel, Ian, Best of the Euroleague and NBA: Anthony Parker, sports.espn.go.com, May 2, 2008, accessed May 6, 2008.
At the end of the 2007–08 season, he ranked 7th in NBA's all-time leaders in three-point field goal percentage. All Time Leaders: Three Point Field Goal Percentage , nba.com, accessed April 25, 2008.