James William Cartwright is a former professional basketball player and a former head coach of the Chicago Bulls. Cartwright played college ball at the University of San Francisco and was a consensus second-team all-American in 1977 and 1979. During his time at USF, Cartwright played on one of the tallest starting lineups in collegiate history. He graduated as the all-time leading scorer for the Dons, averaging 19.1 points and 10.2 rebounds per game.

Cartwright was the third overall pick in the 1979 NBA draft selected by the New York Knicks. He played 16 seasons for the New York Knicks, Chicago Bulls and Seattle SuperSonics. Cartwright made the all-star game as a rookie, when he was averaging 20 points a game. Cartwright was the starting center for the Bulls when they won three consecutive championships from 1991-1993.A few years after his retirement, Cartwright joined the Bulls once again as an assistant coach under Phil Jackson, and the team was once again in the playoffs, winning the title in 1996, 1997 and 1998. The Bulls went through significant changes following the 1997–98 season, with not only Jordan and Pippen leaving, but Tim Floyd taking over as head coach from Jackson. 

In 2008, Cartwright was named as an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns under Terry Porter. In September 2014, Cartwright was hired as the head coach of the Mexico National Basketball Team. In 2016, Cartwright became USF’s director of university initiatives.