ANGELO “ACE” CARTER the FORTY ONE year old RETIRING NBA SUPERSTAR that’s been around willow glen for MOST OF HIS LIFE BEFORE HE MOVED AWAY AND IS NOW MOVING BACK. people around town say they can somehow both be DIRECT and RESTLESS, but if you were to ask them, they’d probably say they’re more like A SMILE TRAINED FOR CAMERAS AND A JAW SET FOR WAR, THE SWISH OF NET AFTER MIDNIGHT, THE SINGLE SQUARE DIAMOND ON ONE EAR, A WELL-SUITED SILHOUETTE STRIDING UNDER GLARING ARENA LIGHTS TO THE ROAR OF A CROWD. the town sure has been rumbling about them lately, apparently they ARE BACK IN WILLOW GLEN TO LAY LOW AND DO SOME IMAGE CONTROL AND TO HIDE FROM THE PRESS… but who knows if that’s true, i guess i’ll just have to stop by REDBUD MANOR and find out !
HISTORY
angelo carter was born in willow glen, texas, the son of a handyman and a well-respected teacher. his father fixed what other people broke, his mother shaped the children other people sent into the world, and between them angelo learned that pride did not need to announce itself. sometimes it came home tired, washed its hands, and sat down to dinner. he is the second-born, with an older sister who gets to everything first and a younger sister who's learned quickly how to be heard. his mother named him as a tribute to maya angelou. angelo. LO, as he's called at home and by those in willow glen who remember him that way. the nickname ace came after the nba draft, commentators needed a name that sounded cleaner, easier to shout, print on shoes, jerseys, billboards, reels. LO belonged to home, ACE belonged to everyone else.
basketball was not the plan. angelo was supposed to study hard, get into ivy league on scholarship, and find the kind of steady work that could make his family’s life easier. then willow glen panthers started filling the gym. by his final years with the panthers, the games had become town business. scouts sat in the stands. opposing coaches built their nights around stopping him. angelo played with raw focus as if he understood, even then, that talent was never only personal once a whole town began attaching its hopes to it. he absorbed their roars and chants, turned it into lift, and made every possession feel like repayment.
college took angelo out of willow glen, but it did not make him anonymous. after one division i season, he declared for the nba draft at 19, a six-foot-three guard with the rare ability to make a possession reorganise around him. new orleans took him late lottery, back when the franchise was still the hornets. his rookie year was uneven. by his third, he was over twenty points a night and the first problem on every scouting report.
chicago made him a legend. the bulls had banners, ghosts, and a fan base exhausted by nostalgia. angelo gave them wins. he arrived at 22 and changed the temperature of the franchise almost immediately: playoffs in his first season, all-star in his second, twenty-five, six and five by his third. fame built itself around him with predictable hunger. endorsements, publicists, stylists, investors, foundation boards, headlines about actresses, singers, party photographs, courtside rumours, business whispers. he bought his parents a house just outside willow glen, he'd made it.
his father died during a game of cardiac arrest when angelo was 30. he was told the quarter, the score, the timing of the medical response only later. after that, he kept playing, though those close to him said something in his manner changed. he became more guarded with reporters, more exact on the floor, less willing to let the public confuse access with intimacy. at 32, his fairytale wedding got derailed because his bride left him on the altar. the tabloids had a field day.
the lakers came when he was 36, after new orleans had developed him and chicago had made him historic. los angeles did not need a saviour. it wanted a veteran who could steady young players, close difficult games and give the franchise another link to greatness alongside lebron, another jewel on the storied crown. over five seasons, that role hardened into its own spectacle. cameras tracked his minutes, injuries, tunnel walks and private life. every strong game became proof he still had it. every poor one became evidence that time had finally arrived. by then, carter was not being asked to become the future. he was being asked to certify the present, until his latest girlfriend got photographed on a yacht with a billionaire.
everyone expected a statement, like a denial, an unfollow, or a neat little sentence from his publicist, polished enough to make his nth humiliation manageable. instead, angelo held a press conference and announced his retirement. he thanked the lakers, chicago, new orleans, the game, his mother, his sisters, his coaches, teammates, and fans. he did not mention the yacht or the billionaire or the woman every outlet had been waiting to hear from his mouth. this was, naturally, received poorly by people who had come hungry for blood. within twenty-four hours, ace carter had disappeared, leaving his entire team frantic,
he's come back to willow glen quietly, to hole up, breathe, think about his life, and decide whether retirement was a finish line, a shelter, or just another room where people would eventually find him. quiet is relative when a man has spent his whole life being managed. his entourage is still going to try to get in his ear. the next investment, the next board seat, the next deal. a limited edition shoe with one of the giants. an alcohol line. a health supplement. a training academy. a recovery brand. a docuseries. everyone has a plan for what ace carter should become next.
so what does willow glen do with a hometown legend who has nothing left to prove and no clear idea what to do with himself? can he be convinced to coach the local college team, or the high school boys who still play under lights that remember his name? will the dallas nba team try to pull him in as a mentor, consultant, or quiet weapon? can your character persuade him to invest in a business, attend a gala, lend his profile to a cause, or let the town use him one more time in the name of good intentions?
is angelo here to give back, hide out, rebuild, or finally become someone who is not being watched for a living?
*wink wonk emoji*
LIST OF HEADLINES OVER THE YEARS
Small-Town Star, Big-Time Poise: Angelo Carter Is No Longer a Secret
Late-Lottery Mystery: Is Angelo Carter Raw, Ready, or Both?
Why Defenders Are Picking Up Ace Carter Before Half Court
Can Ace Carter Survive the Weight of Chicago’s Memory?
The United Center Remembers How to Roar
The Bulls Are No Longer a Tribute Act
The League Keeps Adjusting to Ace Carter. It May Not Be Enough.
How Ace Carter Became the League’s Most Uncomfortable Matchup
Ace Carter’s Camp Denies Romance After West Hollywood Photos Surface
Ace Carter’s Name Attached to Troubled Sports-Tech Start-Up
Courtside Chemistry? Ace Carter Linked to Singer After Bulls-Lakers Game
Ace Carter’s Silence Says More Than His Stat Line
Ace Carter Makes Rare Public Appearance With Girlfriend at Masked New Year’s Bash
Public Heartbreak Follows Ace Carter Into Postseason
Ace Carter’s Limp Becomes Part of the Broadcast
Lakers Sign Ace Carter, Betting Age Still Has Teeth
Ace Carter Attends Khloé Kardashian’s Birthday Party, and the Internet Does the Rest
Ace Carter Is Still Closing Games, and Time Is Still Undefeated
From Finals MVP to Vanity Fair: Ace Carter’s Hollywood Chapter Gets Louder
Ace Carter’s Company Draws Major Investors as Retirement Looms
Ace Carter’s Final Act Is Turning Into Appointment Television
Ace Carter Silent as Yacht Photos Spark Breakup Rumours
The Billionaire, the Baller, and the Boat: Ace Carter’s Private Life Returns to Centre Stage
Ace Carter Fires Publicist
Ace Carter Disappears From Los Angeles After Shock Retirement
NBA Legend's LA Home Lists on the Market for 23.6 mill.
Ace Carter’s Next Act Is Already Being Monetized
HEADCANONS
angelo is pretty direct and blunt when he's allowed to be... which... for most of his life, is never
the hilarious thing is he thinks to himself "don't mess with my sisters. Ever." when they protect him way more than he needs to protect them
he likes orchestras, big rousing choirs, likes listening to those in the morning especially, feels meditative for him
his whole damn body is insured, like if he were to climb a tree, his entire team will panic, this man is never allowed to do anything lest he damage the merchandise
if you saw that headline about how he got abandoned at the altar, that killed him
mayhaps it led to him getting into a reciprocal somethin' somethin' a year or two later with someone else's wife. maybe he was in love with her who knows, not me
wakes up at the ass-crack of dawn and goes on long runs around lake henry because he bets on there being no people around
his house on redbud is now his fortress, but so is willow glen tbh, they rally around him, maybe he knows that deep down by instinct, but he's apprehensive and does not act like he thinks this
good luck getting him to attend any community event, you can try
he remembers every coach who doubted him. he will claim he does not. he does. names, years, exact phrasing. he has forgiven some of them. not all.
still works out in panthers jerseys
he may or may not be replacing half of his entourage, my guy is sick of some of them
WANTED !
literally anyone and everyone from when he was a teenager in willow glen
he needs a new team, a new assistant, a new business manager
maybe you want him to invest in something or have him help you raise funds for something and will not rest until he hears you out
your char really really really really thinks him existing in willow glen again is something special and that he should rub some of that gold dust off on NTU's team, he keeps saying no, perhaps you simply don't give up
high school crush
high school anybody
old teachers, friends, coaches
