In his 21-season playing career, he spent 14 seasons in the NBA and his final seven in the Lega Basket Serie A in Italy.

His mother, Vandalia, taught at his grade school, and his father, Robert, was a custodian at North Carolina A&T University.

McAdoo attended Ben L. Smith High School, where he not only participated in basketball and track but was also in the marching band as a saxophone player.

"[8] McAdoo enrolled at the University of North Carolina in 1971, the only junior college player Dean Smith recruited in his career.

[8] McAdoo, playing alongside Bobby Jones, led Smith's 1971–72 Tar Heels to a 26–5 record and the Final Four of the 1972 NCAA University Division basketball tournament.

That year he enjoyed his first of five All-Star selections, and led Buffalo to its first playoffs appearance, though they would lose in the first round to Dave Cowens and the eventual-champion Boston Celtics.

[20] That season, with McAdoo aided by strong play from Jim McMillian and Randy Smith, the Braves would finish with an improved 49–33 record, though again they would lose in their first postseason matchup, this time a seven-game series loss to Elvin Hayes, Wes Unseld, and the Washington Bullets[21] During the 1976 NBA Playoffs, McAdoo and the Braves would finally advance out of the first round, beating the Philadelphia 76ers as McAdoo averaged 30.3 points, 18.7 rebounds, and 4.3 assists in 47.3 minutes per game.

The following season, on December 7, 1976, McAdoo grabbed a career-high 29 rebounds, while adding 42 points, in a 107–103 loss to the Indiana Pacers.

[23] Two days later, McAdoo was traded by the Buffalo Braves with Tom McMillen to the New York Knicks for John Gianelli and cash.

Although a "big man" at 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m), he had no problems taking shots from the perimeter, which, in his prime, made him a nearly unstoppable force on offense.

Joining the Knicks, McAdoo played alongside future Hall of Fame teammates Walt Frazier, Earl Monroe, Spencer Haywood, Bill Bradley and Phil Jackson.

[25] In 1977–78, the Knicks, finished 43–39 under new Coach Willis Reed, as McAdoo averaged 26.5 points, 12.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.6 blocks and 1.3 steals in 79 games.

On February 12, 1979, McAdoo was traded by the Knicks to the Boston Celtics for Tom Barker and three first-round picks in the 1979 NBA draft.

In the draft, the Knicks selected Bill Cartwright with the third pick, Larry Demic with the ninth, and Sly Williams with the 21st.

McAdoo averaged 20.6 points, 7.1 rebounds, playing fewer minutes in a frontcourt with Cowens, Cedric Maxwell, Marvin Barnes and Rick Robey.

[31] After the season Boston fired Cowens as coach, replaced him with Bill Fitch, and Larry Bird arrived from Indiana State.

The number one pick Boston received was later traded to the Golden State Warriors who used it to select Carroll.

In return, Boston received the #3 overall pick (used to select Kevin McHale) and center Robert Parish.

Playing alongside Hall of Famer Bob Lanier, McAdoo averaged 21.1 points and 8.1 rebounds in 58 games.

[34][35] On February 19, 1981, McAdoo, who had been injured, claimed he was healthy and asked to be reinstated into the Pistons starting lineup.

The next day Pistons general manager Jack McCloskey notified McAdoo to not return for the rest of the season.

[37] On December 24, 1981, McAdoo was traded by the New Jersey Nets to the Los Angeles Lakers for a 1983 2nd round draft pick (Kevin Williams was later selected).

The former MVP was silently frustrated with not starting behind players such as Jim Brewer, Mark Landsberger, and Kurt Rambis, but sacrificed to be part of championship teams.

[24] After the season, the Lakers did not re-sign McAdoo, instead offering a contract to veteran Maurice Lucas for the 6th man role.

[24] He finished his NBA career with 29 games for the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1985–86 season, averaging 10.1 points alongside Julius Erving, Moses Malone and Charles Barkley.

He played for the Buffalo Braves (1972–1976), New York Knicks (1976–1979), Boston Celtics (1979), Detroit Pistons (1979–1981), New Jersey Nets (1980–1981), Los Angeles Lakers (1981–1985) and Philadelphia 76ers (1986).

[54] He was an assistant coach for 19 seasons under Pat Riley (1995–2003, 2005–2008), Stan Van Gundy (2003–2005) and Erik Spoelstra (2008–2013), winning three NBA championships.

[56][55][57][58] McAdoo and his wife, Patrizia, whom he met while playing professionally in Italy, live in Boca Raton, Florida.

Their daughter Rasheeda graduated from Georgia Tech where she played on the tennis team and qualified for the 2017 NCAA Singles Championship.

[61] In 2010, McAdoo took part in the Basketball Without Borders program in Singapore, which uses sport to create a positive social change in areas of education, health and wellness.