Willie J. McCarter (July 26, 1946 – April 18, 2023) was an American basketball player.

[citation needed] He was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers with the 12th pick in the 1969 NBA draft, and played three seasons with the Lakers and Portland Trail Blazers.

[2] McCarter later served as head coach at the University of Detroit Mercy for three seasons from 1979 to 1982, replacing Smokey Gaines after Gaines was hired as the head basketball coach at San Diego State University.

His lifelong friend and former teammate, Dolph Pulliam, was at McCarter's bedside when he died.

Conference tournament champion # denotes interim head coach This biographical article relating to a United States basketball player, coach, or other figure born in the 1940s is a stub.