.jpg) Kidd-Gilchrist in 2024 | |||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | (1993-09-26)September 26, 1993 (age 32) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 232 lb (105 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | St. Patrick (Elizabeth, New Jersey) | ||||||||||||||
| College | Kentucky (2011–2012) | ||||||||||||||
| NBA draft | 2012: 1st round, 2nd overall pick | ||||||||||||||
| Drafted by | Charlotte Bobcats | ||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 2012–2020 | ||||||||||||||
| Position | Small forward /power forward | ||||||||||||||
| Number | 14, 9 | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
| 2012–2020 | Charlotte Bobcats / Hornets | ||||||||||||||
| 2020 | Dallas Mavericks | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights | |||||||||||||||
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Stats at NBA.com  | |||||||||||||||
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |||||||||||||||
Medals
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Michael Anthony Edward Kidd-Gilchrist Jr. (néGilchrist; born September 26, 1993) is an American former professionalbasketball player. Kidd-Gilchrist was drafted second overall by theCharlotte Bobcats in the2012 NBA draft. He played for theUniversity of Kentucky men's basketball team from 2011 to 2012.
Kidd-Gilchrist was born inPhiladelphia,Pennsylvania, and grew up inSomerdale, New Jersey. He was raised by his mother, Cindy Richardson, and his stepfather, Vincent Richardson,[1] after Kidd-Gilchrist's father died before Michael's third birthday.[2] While attending basketball powerhouseSt. Patrick High School inElizabeth, New Jersey (where he played withKyrie Irving), he was considered one of the best basketball players in the United States.[3] He was ranked as the #3 player byESPN.com,[4] andRivals.com;[5] whileScout.com ranked him as the #1 player at his position.[6] In July 2010, Gilchrist, along with futureKentucky teammateMarquis Teague, were a part of the gold medal-winning team in the FIBA U-17 World Championships inHamburg, Germany.[7] Gilchrist's senior year at St. Patrick High School was a pivotal storyline in theHBO documentaryPrayer for a Perfect Season.
Kidd-Gilchrist committed to attend theUniversity of Kentucky on April 14, 2010.[8]
In the first game of the 2011–12 season and his career as a Wildcat, Kidd-Gilchrist was a starter and scored 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting againstMarist. In his second game against 11th-rankedKansas, he scored 12 points and pulled down nine rebounds in a 75–65 victory at Madison Square Garden. In a rivalry game against 5th-rankedNorth Carolina at Rupp Arena, Kidd-Gilchrist led Kentucky in scoring with 17 points and had 11 rebounds, giving him his firstdouble-double as a Wildcat. Against 4th-rankedLouisville, he turned in his most dominating performance of the season with 24 points and 19 rebounds, shooting a career-high 13 free throws and having his first zero-turnover game at Kentucky. This was enough to lead Kentucky to a 69–62 victory in Lexington.
In April 2012, Kidd-Gilchrist declared for the2012 NBA draft. On June 28, he was drafted second overall by theCharlotte Bobcats.[9] On July 7, 2012, the Bobcats signed Kidd-Gilchrist to a rookie scale contract.[10]
On November 10, 2012, in just his fifth NBA game, Kidd-Gilchrist had 25 points and 12 rebounds in a 101–97 win over theDallas Mavericks, marking Charlotte's first-ever win over Dallas in the franchise's nine-year history, ending a 16-game losing streak against the Mavericks.[11] He had a second 25-point, 12-rebound effort on December 19, 2012, against thePhoenix Suns.[12] He became only the second player in NBA history to post two games with at least 25 points and at least 12 rebounds before his 20th birthday and became just the fourth player in 20 years to record two such games in the first 25 games of his career.[13] On April 5, 2013, he had a season-high 14 rebounds against theMiami Heat.[12] On May 14, 2013, he was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team.[14]
In 2013–14, Kidd-Gilchrist missed 19 games mid-season due to injury.[15] He scored a season-high 16 points three times, all in November, and had a season-high 12 rebounds twice during the second half of the season.[16]
Over the 2014 offseason, Kidd-Gilchrist worked with Hornets' assistant coachMark Price to help re-develop his jump shot.[17]
Kidd-Gilchrist's 2014–15 season started slow as he missed 14 of Charlotte's first 20 games because of rib and foot injuries. During this stretch, the Hornets were just 3–11 without Kidd-Gilchrist on the court, who returned on December 10 against theBoston Celtics.[17][18] Kidd-Gilchrist's best play came in January when he averaged 11.4 points and 9.4 rebounds leading the way for a Hornets team that went 10–4 during the month. He scored in double figures ten times in January, and also recorded five double-doubles, which was just one shy of matching his career best for an entire season.[17] He later missed a pair of games right before the All-Star Break with a hamstring strain and sat out Charlotte's final 11 games because of a sprained left ankle he suffered against theWashington Wizards on March 27.[17] Despite a career-low 55 games, Kidd-Gilchrist averaged personal bests in points (10.9) and rebounds (7.6).[17]
On August 26, 2015, Kidd-Gilchrist signed a four-year, $52 million contract extension with the Hornets.[19][20] On October 3, 2015, he suffered a separated right shoulder in a preseason contest against theOrlando Magic.[21] He subsequently missed four months of action, making his season debut on January 29, 2016, against thePortland Trail Blazers.[22] On February 11, he was deemed unlikely to play again in 2015–16 due to another right shoulder injury.[23] He was ruled out for the rest of the season five days later after his torn labrum required another round of surgery.[24][25]
In the Hornets' season opener on October 26, 2016, Kidd-Gilchrist recorded 23 points and 14 rebounds in a 107–96 win over theMilwaukee Bucks.[26] Both were season-high marks.[27] On the year, Kidd-Gilchrist finished with 9.2 points on 47.7 percent shooting, a team-high 7.0 rebounds (1.9 offensive boards) and 1.4 assists to go along with career-best marks in free-throw percentage (78.4 percent), steals (1.0), blocks (1.0) and turnovers (0.7). He was one of just 13 players in the league to start at least 81 games, marking the third such season by a Hornets player since the conclusion of the 2012–13 season.[27]
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Kidd-Gilchrist made his season debut on October 25, 2017, against theDenver Nuggets after missing the first three games for personal reasons. He started and played 10:37, scoring two points on 1-of-6 shooting.[28] On November 15, 2017, he scored a season-high 22 points in a 115–107 loss to theCleveland Cavaliers.[29]
Kidd-Gilchrist missed six games in November 2018 with an ankle injury.[30] He later missed a handful of games in March 2019.[31] Having started all but four of 357 career games for the Hornets heading into the season, Kidd-Gilchrist came off the bench for 61 of his 64 contests in 2018–19. He subsequently averaged 6.7 points and 3.8 rebounds in a career-low 18.4 minutes per contest.[32]
In June 2019, Kidd-Gilchrist underwent a surgical procedure to address a chronic groin strain, and picked up his $13 million player option for the 2019–20 season.[32] On February 8, 2020, the Hornets reached a contract buyout agreement with Kidd-Gilchrist.[33]
Kidd-Gilchrist joined theDallas Mavericks on February 11, 2020.[34][35] He made his debut on February 21, in a 122–106 win over theOrlando Magic.[36]
On November 28, 2020, Kidd-Gilchrist signed with theNew York Knicks.[37] He was waived on December 19.[38] A lawsuit Kidd-Gilchrist filed in 2023 says he was waived after he began to feel acute chest pain and had to quit playing the sport altogether. Kidd-Gilchrist says he has been diagnosed with COVID-19 relatedMyocarditis, and after his insurance denied coverage, he is now suingLloyd's of London for $40 million.[39]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–13 | Charlotte | 78 | 77 | 26.0 | .458 | .222 | .749 | 5.8 | 1.5 | .7 | .9 | 9.0 |
| 2013–14 | Charlotte | 62 | 62 | 24.2 | .473 | .111 | .614 | 5.2 | .8 | .7 | .6 | 7.2 |
| 2014–15 | Charlotte | 55 | 52 | 28.9 | .465 | — | .701 | 7.6 | 1.4 | .5 | .7 | 10.9 |
| 2015–16 | Charlotte | 7 | 7 | 29.3 | .541 | .429 | .690 | 6.4 | 1.3 | .4 | .4 | 12.7 |
| 2016–17 | Charlotte | 81 | 81 | 29.0 | .477 | .111 | .784 | 7.0 | 1.4 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 9.2 |
| 2017–18 | Charlotte | 74 | 74 | 25.0 | .504 | .000 | .684 | 4.1 | 1.0 | .7 | .4 | 9.2 |
| 2018–19 | Charlotte | 64 | 3 | 18.4 | .476 | .340 | .772 | 3.8 | 1.0 | .5 | .6 | 6.7 |
| 2019–20 | Charlotte | 12 | 0 | 13.3 | .340 | .294 | .778 | 2.9 | .8 | .0 | .3 | 4.0 |
| 2019–20 | Dallas | 13 | 0 | 9.3 | .308 | .000 | .800 | 2.5 | .3 | .2 | .2 | .9 |
| Career | 446 | 356 | 24.6 | .474 | .272 | .715 | 5.4 | 1.2 | .7 | .7 | 8.4 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Charlotte | 4 | 4 | 22.8 | .519 | .000 | .600 | 6.5 | 1.5 | .0 | .5 | 8.5 |
| 2020 | Dallas | 6 | 0 | 9.2 | .286 | .222 | .667 | 1.0 | .5 | .2 | .2 | 2.3 |
| Career | 10 | 4 | 14.6 | .439 | .200 | .625 | 3.2 | .9 | .1 | .3 | 4.8 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011–12 | Kentucky | 40 | 39 | 31.1 | .491 | .255 | .745 | 7.4 | 1.9 | 1.0 | .9 | 11.9 |
Gilchrist's father died August 11, 1996, from multiple gunshot wounds. He watches the movieThe Lion King once a week because he watched it almost every day with his father until he was three years old. Gilchrist committed to Kentucky on April 14, 2010, which would have been his father's 44th birthday.[40]
Gilchrist's father played alongsideMilt Wagner on a state championship team atCamden High in 1981. Wagner's son, former NBA playerDajuan Wagner, is Gilchrist's cousin.[41]
On July 7, 2011, Gilchrist announced viaTwitter that he had legally changed his last name to Kidd-Gilchrist, in order to honor the other important man in his life, his uncle Darrin Kidd. Kidd died on the day Gilchrist was set to sign his letter of intent to play at the University of Kentucky.[42]
Kidd-Gilchrist has astutter. Due to this, he developed an anxiety in front of media, although he has made tremendous strides in managing this as well as his stutter.[43]
As a stutterer, Kidd-Gilchrist decided to make his mark upon the country by endeavoring to improve and empower the lives of fellow stutterers. So, in 2021, Kidd-Gilchrist founded a501(c)(3) organization called Change & Impact, with a mission and vision of improving access to healthcare and expand services and resources for those who stutter and changing the social stigma of stuttering through awareness, education and empowerment.[44]
One of Kidd-Gilchrist's accomplishments include passing a bill to expand healthcare access to those who stutter in Kentucky, a bipartisan effort that the Governor of Kentucky signed into law in 2024.[45]
Kidd-Gilchrist is further working on efforts to pass similar bills in Pennsylvania and California.[46]
In addition to the political efforts, Kidd-Gilchrist has made it a priority to travel the country on a Change & Impact Stuttering Awareness Tour to connect with colleges and universities, hospitals, camps, support groups, established and future Speech- Language Pathologists (SLPs), and children, teens and adults who stutter.[47]
In his advocacy efforts, Kidd-Gilchrist has met with more than a dozen senators, two dozen US representatives, over a hundred state representatives, and visited over 60 universities and a dozen children's hospitals.[48]
