Greivis Vásquez
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No. 21 – Memphis Grizzlies | |
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Position | Point Guard |
Personal information | |
Born | Caracas, Venezuela | January 16, 1987
Nationality | Venezuelan |
Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
Listed weight | 200 lb (91 kg) |
Career information | |
High school | Montrose Christian School |
College | University of Maryland |
NBA draft | 2010: 1st round, 28th overall pick |
Selected by the Memphis Grizzlies | |
Career highlights and awards | |
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Stats at NBA.com | |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
Greivis Vasquez (Spanish: Greivis Vásquez Rodríguez; born January 16, 1987) is a Venezuelan basketball player with the Memphis Grizzlies, who selected him in the first round (28th overall) of the 2010 NBA Draft. He was chosen after a stellar U.S. college career with the University of Maryland men's basketball team. Vasquez finished second on the Terrapins' all-time scoring list, with 2,171 career points.[1]
He was born in Caracas and moved to the United States to attend high school at Montrose Christian School in Rockville, Maryland in 2004.[2] During his senior year at Montrose, he committed to the University of Maryland to play under head coach Gary Williams.
In 2007, Vasquez played on the Venezuelan national basketball team in the FIBA America Championships. In his final college season of 2009–10, he was one of three Venezuelans playing in NCAA Division I men's basketball, with the others being David Cubillan of the Marquette Golden Eagles and Gregory Echenique of the Creighton Bluejays.
Early life
Vasquez grew up in Caracas, Venezuela, where he lived with his parents, Ivis Rodriguez and Gregorio Vasquez, and brother, Ingerman Sanoya. At Montrose Christian, Vasquez played under head coach Stu Vetter, and helped the Mustangs post a 43–5 record over his junior and senior seasons. While at Montrose Christian he played with future college and NBA star Kevin Durant.
College career
Freshman Year (2006–07)
In the beginning of his freshman year (2006–07), Vasquez did not start for the Terps, but still played solid minutes. Midway through the season, he began starting at the 2 guard position, alongside fellow freshman Eric Hayes at the starting point guard position. He remained a starter for the rest of the season. He heavily contributed to the Terrapins' six-game winning streak at the end of the season, giving Maryland a #4 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Vasquez averaged 9.8 points, 4.7 assists, and 3.3 rebounds per game during his freshman season, and shooting percentages of 44.4 for field goals, 31.6 for three-pointers, and 79.8 for free throws.[1]
Sophomore Year (2007–08)
Vasquez had per-game averages of 17 points, 6.8 assists, and 5.7 rebounds, and shooting percentages of 43.2 for field goals, 30.9 for three-pointers, and 78.2 for free throws.[1]
Junior Year (2008–09)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ae/Greivis_Vasquez.jpg/150px-Greivis_Vasquez.jpg)
As a junior, Vasquez led the Terrapins in scoring (17.5), rebounds (5.4), assists (5.0), steals (1.40), and minutes (34.6 per game). He became the first Terrapin basketball player to ever lead the team in points, rebounds and assists in a single season, and only the 6th player to ever accomplish that task in the ACC. On February 21, 2009, Vasquez registered a then career-high 35 points, to go along with 11 rebounds and 10 assists—Maryland's third triple-double in history and the first since 1987—in a come-from-behind 88–85 overtime win over UNC.[3][4] At the end of his junior year, Vasquez ranked 7th in scoring, 3rd in FT percentage (.867), 3rd in assists per game, 3rd in assist/turnover ratio (1.80), and 5th in minutes per game in the ACC. He reached double-figures in scoring in 57 of his last 61 games, including his last 17. In Maryland's final 10 games, he had five 20-point games as well.[5] He was named Second-Team All-ACC at the close of the regular season.[6]
Senior Year (2009–10)
As a senior, Vasquez averaged 19.6 points, 6.3 assists, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per game over 33 games. Vasquez is the only player in the country to average more than 18 points and 6 assists per game. His honors included the 2010 Bob Cousy Award given by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to the nation's best collegiate point guard, for which he edged out Sherron Collins (Kansas), Scottie Reynolds (Villanova), Jon Scheyer (Duke), Evan Turner (Ohio State), and John Wall (Kentucky).[7]
Against Georgia Tech on February 20, 2010, Vasquez scored the 2,000th point of his collegiate career, making him the only player in ACC history to compile at least 2,000 points, 700 assists, and 600 rebounds.[8] The following week, Vasquez set a new career scoring high with 41 points in the Terrapins' double-overtime victory at Virginia Tech.[9] Vasquez also scored 20 points in Maryland's home win over Duke on Senior Night, and made several critical baskets and assists in the final minutes to secure a victory. Vazquez helped lead Maryland to a 13–3 conference record to tie Duke for the regular season ACC championship. He was named a unanimous first-team All-ACC selection on March 8, 2010, and the ACC Player of the Year on March 9, 2010, beating out Duke's Jon Scheyer and Virginia Tech's Malcolm Delaney.[10][11] Vasquez also won three ACC Player of the Week honors in his final season, which brought his career total to seven.[12] Vasquez was named a consensus second-team All-American.[13]
NBA
The Memphis Grizzlies selected Vasquez with the 28th pick in the first round of the 2010 NBA Draft.[14]
Personal life
In June 2010, Vasquez endorsed Bob Ehrlich for Maryland governor in the November 2010 elections.[15]
References
- ^ a b c Greivis Vasquez stats
- ^ Tysiac, Ken. "Q&A with Maryland guard Greivis Vasquez", Sporting News, November 29, 2007. Accessed December 1, 2007. "Q: What was Kevin Durant like when you played with him at Montrose Christian?"
- ^ Vasquez records triple-double to lead Maryland's rally past No. 3 UNC
- ^ "Greivis Vasquez, Maryland upsets North Carolina". Interbasket.net. February 21, 2009.
- ^ "Greivis Vasquez Basketball Profile". UMTerps.com.
- ^ "Greivis Vasquez named second-team All-ACC". baltimoresun.com.
- ^ "Vasquez named one of six Cousy Award finalists". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
- ^ Ginsburg, David (February 20, 2010). "Maryland squeezes past Georgia Tech 76–74". Associated Press. Retrieved February 21, 2010.
- ^ "Terps outlast Va. Tech in double overtime". Baltimore Sun. February 27, 2010.
- ^ "ACC Announces 2009–10 All-ACC Teams".
- ^ "Terrapins' Vasquez Named ACC Player of the Year". TheACC.com. March 9, 2010. Retrieved March 9, 2010.
- ^ "Maryland's Greivis Vasquez and Georgia Tech's Derrick Favors earn ACC Basketball Honors". TheACC.com. February 22, 2010. Retrieved April 5, 2010.
- ^ Greivis Vasquez Earns Consensus All-American Honors, CSN Washington, April 3, 2010.
- ^ Greivis Vasquez drafted, celebration begins, The Washington Post, June 24, 2010.
- ^ http://www.bobehrlich.com/2010/06/video-greivis-vasquez-supports-bob-ehrlich-for-governor/