Sweetney was selected by the
New York Knicks with the 9th overall pick, in the
2003 NBA draft. After a two-year stint with only 42
regular season contests in
his rookie year, he was traded to the
Chicago Bulls on October 4, 2005, alongside
Tim Thomas and
Jermaine Jackson, for
Eddy Curry and
Antonio Davis. Sweetney has battled weight issues throughout his life and career. It was reported in
The Chicago Tribune that, if Sweetney did not lose a certain amount of weight, his career could be in danger. Sweetney's final NBA game ever ended up being in Game 2 of the 2007 Eastern Conference Semifinals on May 7, 2007. In that game, the Bulls would lose 87 - 108 to the
Detroit Pistons while Sweetney recorded 2 points in 3 minutes of playing time. In the summer of 2009 he played with the
Boston Celtics summer league team. He was invited to attend training camp in October 2009 to try out with the Celtics and attempt to resume an NBA career. He was waived on October 22. In early December 2011, Sweetney rejoined the Boston Celtics for training camp, but he was cut on December 22, 2011. On January 13, 2012, Sweetney agreed to a deal with the
Vaqueros de Bayamon of the
BSN, Puerto Rico's basketball league. In February 2013, he signed a one-month deal with the Venezuelan team
Guaiqueríes de Margarita. After his contract expired, he returned to the Vaqueros de Bayamon. In February 2014, he signed with Club Atlético Atenas. On May 1, 2014, he signed with
Brujos de Guayama. He was waived on July 1, 2014. In November 2015, after more than a year off, Sweetney signed a contract in Uruguay with
Urunday Universitario. Sweetney competed for
Team City of Gods in
The Basketball Tournament. He was a center on the 2015 team who made it to the semifinals, losing to
Overseas Elite 84–71. Sweetney has since run
Tamir Goodman's basketball camp. ==Coaching career==