Juan Ignacio Sánchez
Encyclopedia
Juan Ignacio Sánchez Brown, also known as Pepe Sánchez (born May 8, 1977 in Bahía Blanca
Bahía Blanca
Bahía Blanca is a city located in the south-west of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, by the Atlantic Ocean, and seat of government of Bahía Blanca Partido. It has a population of 274,509 inhabitants according to the...

), is an Argentine
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

 professional basketball player. He is a point guard
Point guard
Point guard , also called the play maker or "the ball-handler", is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position – essentially, he is expected to run the team's offense by controlling the ball and making sure that...

. He was part of Argentina
Argentina national basketball team
The Argentina national basketball team represents Argentina in basketball international competitions, and is controlled by the Argentine Basketball Federation....

's 2004 Olympic
Basketball at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Basketball at the 2004 Summer Olympics took place at the Helliniko Olympic Indoor Arena in Athens, Greece for the preliminary rounds, with the latter stages being held in the Olympic Indoor Hall at the Athens Olympic Sports Complex....

 gold medal team. Pepe Sánchez (1.93 metres, 6 feet 4 inches tall) was the first Argentine to play in the NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...

. He played three seasons, with the Atlanta Hawks
Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are part of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association .-The first years:...

 (5 games) Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...

 (24 games), Detroit Pistons
Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are a franchise of the National Basketball Association based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The team's home arena is The Palace of Auburn Hills. It was originally founded in Fort Wayne, Indiana as the Fort Wayne Pistons as a member of the National Basketball League in 1941, where...

 (9 games) and the Golden State Warriors
Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in Oakland, California. They are part of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...

, averaging only 5 minutes per game.

Early years

At age 12, he began playing for the youth team of Club Bahiense del Norte, together with future NBA star Emanuel Ginóbili
Manu Ginobili
Emanuel David "Manu" Ginóbili is an Argentine professional basketball player. Coming from a family of professional basketball players, he is a member of the Argentine men's national basketball team and the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association .Ginóbili spent the early part of...

. At age 17 he moved to Deportivo Roca
Deportivo Roca
The Club Social y Deportivo General Roca is an Argentine sports club, based on General Roca, in the Río Negro Province. The club, founded on September 1, 1974, is mostly known for its football and basketball teams....

 for the 1994/95 season of the Argentine League
Liga Nacional de Básquetbol
The Liga Nacional de Básquet is the top level of the Argentine basketball league system. The league is controlled by the Basketball Clubs' Association...

, where he played point guard. The following year, he accepted a scholarship offer from Temple University
Temple University
Temple University is a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell, Temple University is among the nation's largest providers of professional education and prepares the largest body of professional...

 in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

, but stayed in Argentina during the 1995/96 season, playing for Estudiantes de Bahía Blanca
Estudiantes de Bahía Blanca
Club Estudiantes de Bahía Blanca, known as Weber Bahía Estudiantes for sponsorship reasons, is a sports club based in Bahía Blanca, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. The club is best known for its basketball team, that currently plays in the Liga Nacional de Básquet , the top division of the...

.

After his participation in the 1996 Youth Panamerican Tournament in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

, where he represented Argentina's national basketball team
Argentina national basketball team
The Argentina national basketball team represents Argentina in basketball international competitions, and is controlled by the Argentine Basketball Federation....

, he moved to Philadelphia where he played for the Temple Owls
Temple Owls
Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has a very long-running athletic program. The school's sports teams are called the Owls, originating from the university's early days as a night school. The current athletic director is Bill Bradshaw....

 college team
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...

 for 4 years under Hall of Fame
Basketball Hall of Fame
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States, honors exceptional basketball players, coaches, referees, executives, and other major contributors to the game of basketball worldwide...

 coach John Chaney, and finished his career as the #2 player in the NCAA in steals. As a junior, the crafty point guard guided the Owls to an appearance in the Elite Eight
1999 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 1999 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 11, 1999, and ended with the championship game on March 29 at Tropicana Field in St....

, where they fell to Duke
Duke Blue Devils men's basketball
The Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team is the college basketball program representing Duke University in the Atlantic Coast Conference of NCAA Division I...

. Despite averaging only 5.6 points per game as a senior, he was named a Third Team All-American by the Associated Press. He earned a degree in history at Temple in 2000.

Europe

In Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

, Sánchez won the Euroleague
Euroleague
Euroleague Basketball, commonly known as the Euroleague, is the highest level tier and most important professional club basketball competition in Europe, with teams from up to 18 different countries, members of FIBA Europe. For sponsorship reasons, for five seasons starting with 2010–2011, it is...

 championship in the Euroleague 2001-02
Euroleague 2001-02
The Euroleague is an international basketball club competition for elite clubs throughout Europe. The Euroleague season 2001-02 started on October 10, 2001 and ended with the championship final game on May 5, 2002, in PalaMalaguti, Bologna, Italy. 32 teams competed for the championship, which was...

 season while playing with the Greek league
A1 Ethniki
The Greek Basket League , commonly referred to as the Greek Basketball League or Greek Basketball Championship, is the highest professional basketball league in Greece. It is run by HEBA...

 club Panathinaikos, and in the Spanish League with Etosa Alicante
CB Lucentum Alicante
Club Baloncesto Lucentum Alicante is a professional basketball team based in Alicante, Valencian Community. Lucentum Alicante is member of the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto .-Sponsorship naming:...

. He transferred to Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 Unicaja Málaga in 2004, with whom he won the 2005/06 ACB League
Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto
The Liga ACB, known as the Liga Endesa for sponsorship reasons, is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in Spain. It was founded in 1956 with the name of Liga Nacional. The league changed its name to the current one in 1983. The league is rated as one of the three "A" level European...

; Unicaja's first Spanish League title. After three years at Unicaja, he left as a free agent when his contract expired at the end of the 2006-07 season. On August 13, 2007, he signed with FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona Bàsquet
FC Barcelona Bàsquet, known as FC Barcelona Regal for sponsorship reasons, is a Spanish professional basketball club. It is part of the FC Barcelona sports club and was founded on August 24, 1926 which makes it the oldest club in Liga ACB. The club competes in the Asociación de Clubes de Baloncesto...

.

In July 2008, he signed with Real Madrid
Real Madrid Baloncesto
Real Madrid Baloncesto is a Spanish professional basketball team founded in 1932 as a division of the Real Madrid club. They play in the Asociación de Clubes de Baloncesto ....

, but he was released in April 2009.

Teams

  • 1994/1995 Deportivo Roca
    Deportivo Roca
    The Club Social y Deportivo General Roca is an Argentine sports club, based on General Roca, in the Río Negro Province. The club, founded on September 1, 1974, is mostly known for its football and basketball teams....

     (Argentina
    Argentina
    Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

    )
  • 1995/1996 Estudiantes de Bahía Blanca
    Estudiantes de Bahía Blanca
    Club Estudiantes de Bahía Blanca, known as Weber Bahía Estudiantes for sponsorship reasons, is a sports club based in Bahía Blanca, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. The club is best known for its basketball team, that currently plays in the Liga Nacional de Básquet , the top division of the...

     (Argentina)
  • 1996/2000 Temple
    Temple University
    Temple University is a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell, Temple University is among the nation's largest providers of professional education and prepares the largest body of professional...

     Owls
    Temple Owls
    Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has a very long-running athletic program. The school's sports teams are called the Owls, originating from the university's early days as a night school. The current athletic director is Bill Bradshaw....

     (United States
    United States
    The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

    )
  • 2000/2001 Philadelphia 76ers
    Philadelphia 76ers
    The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...

     (United States)
  • 2001/2001 Atlanta Hawks
    Atlanta Hawks
    The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are part of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association .-The first years:...

     (United States)
  • 2001/2002 Panathinaikos (Greece
    Greece
    Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

    )
  • 2002/2003 Detroit Pistons
    Detroit Pistons
    The Detroit Pistons are a franchise of the National Basketball Association based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The team's home arena is The Palace of Auburn Hills. It was originally founded in Fort Wayne, Indiana as the Fort Wayne Pistons as a member of the National Basketball League in 1941, where...

     (United States)
  • 2003/2004 Golden State Warriors
    Golden State Warriors
    The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in Oakland, California. They are part of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...

    , pre-season (United States)
  • 2003/2004 Etosa Alicante
    CB Lucentum Alicante
    Club Baloncesto Lucentum Alicante is a professional basketball team based in Alicante, Valencian Community. Lucentum Alicante is member of the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto .-Sponsorship naming:...

     (Spain
    Spain
    Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

    )
  • 2004-2007 Unicaja Málaga (Spain)
  • 2007-2008 AXA FC Barcelona
    FC Barcelona Bàsquet
    FC Barcelona Bàsquet, known as FC Barcelona Regal for sponsorship reasons, is a Spanish professional basketball club. It is part of the FC Barcelona sports club and was founded on August 24, 1926 which makes it the oldest club in Liga ACB. The club competes in the Asociación de Clubes de Baloncesto...

     (Spain)
  • 2008-2009 Real Madrid
    Real Madrid Baloncesto
    Real Madrid Baloncesto is a Spanish professional basketball team founded in 1932 as a division of the Real Madrid club. They play in the Asociación de Clubes de Baloncesto ....

     (Spain)
  • 2010-present Estudiantes de Bahía Blanca
    Estudiantes de Bahía Blanca
    Club Estudiantes de Bahía Blanca, known as Weber Bahía Estudiantes for sponsorship reasons, is a sports club based in Bahía Blanca, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. The club is best known for its basketball team, that currently plays in the Liga Nacional de Básquet , the top division of the...

     (Argentina)

Argentine national team

Sánchez was first called up to the Argentine senior national team in 1998. With Argentina, he played at the World Championships at both the 1998 FIBA World Championship
1998 FIBA World Championship
The 1998 FIBA World Championship was the 13th FIBA World Championship, an international basketball tournament held by the International Basketball Federation and hosted in Athens, Greece from July 29 to August 9, 1998...

 and the 2002 FIBA World Championship
2002 FIBA World Championship
The 2002 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball tournament held by the International Basketball Federation in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA from August 29 to September 8, 2002.-Venues:-Squads:...

 (where he won the silver medal), the South American Championship 1999
South American Basketball Championship 1943
The South American Basketball Championship 1943 was the eleventh South American Basketball Championship. It was held in Lima, Peru and won by the Argentina national basketball team...

 (where he won the silver medal), and at the 2004 Olympic Basketball Tournament
Basketball at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Basketball at the 2004 Summer Olympics took place at the Helliniko Olympic Indoor Arena in Athens, Greece for the preliminary rounds, with the latter stages being held in the Olympic Indoor Hall at the Athens Olympic Sports Complex....

 (where he won the gold medal).

Sánchez's performance at the 2006 FIBA World Basketball Championship
2006 FIBA World Championship
The 2006 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball competition hosted by Japan from August 19 to September 3, 2006. It was co-organised by the International Basketball Federation , Japan Basketball Association and the 2006 Organizing Committee...

 was quite satisfactory, with the Argentine press choosing him as the most outstanding player in the team.

External links

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