Sasha Vujacic
Encyclopedia
Aleksandar "Sasha" Vujačić ' onMouseout='HidePop("40093")' href="/topics/Slovenian_language">Slovene
: Saša Vujačič, rendered in English as Sasha Vujacic; born March 8, 1984) is a Slovenian basketball player who has played in Italy, the United States (for the Los Angeles Lakers
), and more recently for Anadolu Efes S.K. in Turkey
. Though he has played the point guard
position in Europe, he found more playing time at the shooting guard
spot while in the Lakers' triangle offense
.
basketball coach. Vujačić was a member of the Slovenian junior national team. He won a silver medal at the 2002 European Junior Championship.
Vujačić began his professional career at the age of 16, playing with Snaidero Udine of Italy
. The same year, he was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers with the 27th overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft
.
.
During the 2006–07 season he made a shot against the Dallas Mavericks
to end their 13-game winning streak.
In the 2007–08 season, Vujačić recorded a then-career high 22 points in a win over the Denver Nuggets, and he tied it in a win over the Toronto Raptors. Vujačić shot 60% from beyond the three-point line in the 2006 NBA Playoffs
.
In the 2007-2008 season Vujacic made 118 of his 270 three-point field goal attempts, setting the Los Angeles Lakers single-season record for the best three-point field goal percentage (.437) in a single season.
During Game 3 of the 2008 NBA Finals
, Vujačić scored a career playoff high, totaling 20 points off the bench. Vujačić's 20, with the exception of Kobe Bryant
, made him the only Laker to score in double figures.
In July 2008 he switched agents to Rob Pelinka
. Later that month (July 25) Vujačić and the Lakers agreed to a three-year deal worth 15 million dollars.
In Game 6 of the 2010 NBA Finals
, Vujačić led the Lakers' bench with nine points, including two three-pointers. With 11 seconds left in Game 7 and the Lakers leading by only two points, Vujačić helped secure the Lakers' championship with two crucial free throws.
On December 15, 2010, Vujačić was traded to the New Jersey Nets
in a three-team trade involving the Lakers and Houston Rockets
. On the Nets, Vujačić reunited with former Lakers teammate Jordan Farmar
. As a result of Ben Uzoh
wearing the number 18 jersey, Vujačić changed his number to 20.
In his debut for the Nets, Vujačić had 6 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists in 27 minutes of play.
On January 1, 2011, Vujačić tied his career high of 22 points, eight games after being traded to the Nets.
On February 9, 2011, Vujačić set a new career high with 25 points in a win over the Hornets.
In July 2011 he signed a one-year deal and an option for another with Anadolu Efes S.K..
| style="text-align:left;"| 2004–05
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 35 || 3 || 11.5 || .282 || .270 || .947 || 1.8 || 1.5 || .3 || .1 || 2.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2005–06
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 82 || 4 || 17.7 || .346 || .343 || .885 || 1.9 || 1.7 || .6 || .0 || 3.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2006–07
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 73 || 4 || 12.8 || .392 || .373 || .878 || 1.5 || .9 || .6 || .0 || 4.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2007–08
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 72 || 0 || 17.8 || .454 || .437 || .835 || 2.1 || 1.0 || .5 || .1 || 8.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2008–09
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 80 || 0 || 16.2 || .387 || .363 || .921 || 1.7 || 1.4 || 1.0 || .1 || 5.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2009–10
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 67 || 1 || 8.6 || .402 || .309 || .848 || 1.2 || .6 || .3 || .1 || 2.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2010–11
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 11 || 0 || 4.9 || .348 || .429 || .500 || .4 || .5 || .1 || .0 || 1.8
|-
| align="left" | 2010–11
| align="left" | New Jersey
| 56 || 17 || 28.5 || .404 || .369 || .851 || 3.3 || 2.3 || 1.0 || .1 || 11.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Career
| style="text-align:left;"|
| 476 || 29 || 15.9 || .395 || .371 || .870 || 1.9 || 1.3 || .6 || .1 || 5.6
| style="text-align:left;"| 2005–06
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 7 || 0 || 18.4 || .423 || .600 || 1.000 || 2.4 || .9 || .6 || .0 || 6.0
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2006–07
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 4 || 0 || 10.8 || .556 || .250 || .000 || 1.0 || .8 || .2 || .0 || 2.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2007–08
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 21 || 0 || 21.7 || .399 || .392 || .857 || 2.2 || .8 || .6 || .2 || 8.1
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2008–09
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 23 || 0 || 10.9 || .264 || .314 || .833 || 1.4 || .5 || .4 || .2 || 3.0
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2009–10
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 10 || 0 || 7.6 || .435 || .400 || .833 || .8 || .5 || .2 || .0 || 3.1
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Career
| style="text-align:left;"|
| 65 || 0 || 14.7 || .366 || .384 || .879 || 1.6 || .6 || .4 || .1 || 5.0
, present-day Slovenia
, to a Serbian
father and Slovenian mother. His father was a Serbian basketball coach, while his mother was a Slovenian volleyball player. His mother was playing volleyball for a top Yugoslav women's club, Branik Maribor, but quit her career at the age of 19 when she got pregnant with Vujačić. His parents divorced when he was 6, and he lived with his mother and soon afterwards with his stepfather. He has two siblings, a sister named Nina, and a brother named Aljoša. In addition to basketball, he enjoys playing volleyball, tennis, and football
.
During his time with the Los Angeles Lakers he would often speak in Italian with Kobe Bryant
, who is also fluent in the language.
He is engaged to professional tennis player Maria Sharapova
.
Slovenian language
Slovene or Slovenian is a South Slavic language spoken by approximately 2.5 million speakers worldwide, the majority of whom live in Slovenia. It is the first language of about 1.85 million people and is one of the 23 official and working languages of the European Union...
: Saša Vujačič, rendered in English as Sasha Vujacic; born March 8, 1984) is a Slovenian basketball player who has played in Italy, the United States (for the Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
), and more recently for Anadolu Efes S.K. in Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. Though he has played the 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...
position in Europe, he found more playing time at the shooting guard
Shooting guard
The shooting guard , also known as the two or off guard, is one of five traditional positions on a basketball team. Players of the position are often shorter, leaner, and quicker than forwards. A shooting guard's main objective is to score points for his team...
spot while in the Lakers' triangle offense
Triangle offense
The Triangle Offense, also known as the triple-post offense, is an offensive strategy in basketball. Its basic ideas were initially established by Hall of Fame coach Sam Barry at the University of Southern California. His system was later refined by former Kansas State University head basketball...
.
Early career
His father Vaso Vujačić is a SerbianSerbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
basketball coach. Vujačić was a member of the Slovenian junior national team. He won a silver medal at the 2002 European Junior Championship.
Vujačić began his professional career at the age of 16, playing with Snaidero Udine of Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. The same year, he was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers with the 27th overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft
2004 NBA Draft
The 2004 NBA Draft was held on June 24, 2004 at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York and was broadcast live on ESPN at 7:00 pm . In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur college basketball players and other first-time eligible...
.
Career highlights
During the 2005–06 season Vujačić made the go-ahead three-pointer in overtime to give the Lakers the lead for good in a win against the Utah JazzUtah Jazz
The Utah Jazz is a professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They are currently a part of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
.
During the 2006–07 season he made a shot against the Dallas Mavericks
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
to end their 13-game winning streak.
In the 2007–08 season, Vujačić recorded a then-career high 22 points in a win over the Denver Nuggets, and he tied it in a win over the Toronto Raptors. Vujačić shot 60% from beyond the three-point line in the 2006 NBA Playoffs
2006 NBA Playoffs
The 2006 NBA Playoffs was the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2005–06 season. The Miami Heat won the first championship in the history of the franchise by defeating the Dallas Mavericks 4-2 in the 2006 NBA Finals...
.
In the 2007-2008 season Vujacic made 118 of his 270 three-point field goal attempts, setting the Los Angeles Lakers single-season record for the best three-point field goal percentage (.437) in a single season.
During Game 3 of the 2008 NBA Finals
2008 NBA Finals
The 2008 NBA Finals was the championship series of the 2007–08 NBA season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Boston Celtics, top-seeded champions of the Eastern Conference, defeated the Los Angeles Lakers, top-seeded champions of the Western Conference, four games to two in a...
, Vujačić scored a career playoff high, totaling 20 points off the bench. Vujačić's 20, with the exception of Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bean Bryant is an American professional basketball player who plays shooting guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . Bryant enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Lower Merion High School, where he was recognized as the top high school...
, made him the only Laker to score in double figures.
In July 2008 he switched agents to Rob Pelinka
Rob Pelinka
Robert Todd Pelinka, Jr. is an American lawyer, National Basketball Association sports agent and former college basketball player from Lake Bluff, Illinois . He is best known as Kobe Bryant's agent and President and CEO of The Landmark Sports Agency, LLC...
. Later that month (July 25) Vujačić and the Lakers agreed to a three-year deal worth 15 million dollars.
In Game 6 of the 2010 NBA Finals
2010 NBA Finals
The 2010 NBA Finals was the National Basketball Association championship series for the 2009–10 season. The best-of-seven playoff was contested between the Los Angeles Lakers, champions of the Western Conference and defending NBA champions, and the Boston Celtics, champions of the Eastern Conference...
, Vujačić led the Lakers' bench with nine points, including two three-pointers. With 11 seconds left in Game 7 and the Lakers leading by only two points, Vujačić helped secure the Lakers' championship with two crucial free throws.
On December 15, 2010, Vujačić was traded to the New Jersey Nets
New Jersey Nets
The New Jersey Nets are a professional basketball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...
in a three-team trade involving the Lakers and Houston Rockets
Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. The team plays in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was established in 1967, and played in San Diego, California for four years, before being...
. On the Nets, Vujačić reunited with former Lakers teammate Jordan Farmar
Jordan Farmar
Jordan Robert Farmar is an American professional basketball point guard for Maccabi Tel Aviv of the Israeli Basketball Super League and Euroleague. He is also under contract with the New Jersey Nets, and is expected to return to the team after the 2011 NBA lockout ends.In high school, he was the...
. As a result of Ben Uzoh
Ben Uzoh
Ben Uzoh is an American professional basketball player. He played for the University of Tulsa Golden Hurricane over his four year collegiate career. After going undrafted in the 2010 NBA Draft, Uzoh signed a partially guaranteed contract with the National Basketball Association's New Jersey Nets...
wearing the number 18 jersey, Vujačić changed his number to 20.
In his debut for the Nets, Vujačić had 6 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists in 27 minutes of play.
On January 1, 2011, Vujačić tied his career high of 22 points, eight games after being traded to the Nets.
On February 9, 2011, Vujačić set a new career high with 25 points in a win over the Hornets.
In July 2011 he signed a one-year deal and an option for another with Anadolu Efes S.K..
Regular season
|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2004–05
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
| 35 || 3 || 11.5 || .282 || .270 || .947 || 1.8 || 1.5 || .3 || .1 || 2.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2005–06
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 82 || 4 || 17.7 || .346 || .343 || .885 || 1.9 || 1.7 || .6 || .0 || 3.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2006–07
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 73 || 4 || 12.8 || .392 || .373 || .878 || 1.5 || .9 || .6 || .0 || 4.3
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2007–08
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 72 || 0 || 17.8 || .454 || .437 || .835 || 2.1 || 1.0 || .5 || .1 || 8.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2008–09
2008–09 NBA season
The 2008–09 NBA season was the 63rd season of the National Basketball Association . The 1,230-game regular season began on Tuesday, October 28, 2008, and ended on Wednesday, April 15, 2009...
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 80 || 0 || 16.2 || .387 || .363 || .921 || 1.7 || 1.4 || 1.0 || .1 || 5.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2009–10
2009–10 NBA season
The 2009–10 NBA season was the 64th season of the National Basketball Association . The 1,230-game regular season began on Tuesday, October 27, 2009, and ended on Wednesday, April 14, 2010....
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 67 || 1 || 8.6 || .402 || .309 || .848 || 1.2 || .6 || .3 || .1 || 2.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2010–11
2010–11 NBA season
The 2010–11 NBA season was the 65th season of the National Basketball Association . The 2011 NBA All-Star Game was played on February 20, 2011 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat in six games, 4 games to 2, to win their first NBA title, and...
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 11 || 0 || 4.9 || .348 || .429 || .500 || .4 || .5 || .1 || .0 || 1.8
|-
| align="left" | 2010–11
| align="left" | New Jersey
New Jersey Nets
The New Jersey Nets are a professional basketball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...
| 56 || 17 || 28.5 || .404 || .369 || .851 || 3.3 || 2.3 || 1.0 || .1 || 11.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Career
| style="text-align:left;"|
| 476 || 29 || 15.9 || .395 || .371 || .870 || 1.9 || 1.3 || .6 || .1 || 5.6
Playoffs
|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2005–06
2006 NBA Playoffs
The 2006 NBA Playoffs was the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2005–06 season. The Miami Heat won the first championship in the history of the franchise by defeating the Dallas Mavericks 4-2 in the 2006 NBA Finals...
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
| 7 || 0 || 18.4 || .423 || .600 || 1.000 || 2.4 || .9 || .6 || .0 || 6.0
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2006–07
2007 NBA Playoffs
The 2007 NBA Playoffs was the postseason to the National Basketball Association's 2006–2007 season.There were four rounds of postseason action, all of them in a best-of-seven format, with teams seeded on a bracket. The team with the better record wasn't necessarily the basis of seeding teams in...
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 4 || 0 || 10.8 || .556 || .250 || .000 || 1.0 || .8 || .2 || .0 || 2.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2007–08
2008 NBA Playoffs
The 2008 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2007–08 season which ended with the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics defeating the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers 4–2....
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 21 || 0 || 21.7 || .399 || .392 || .857 || 2.2 || .8 || .6 || .2 || 8.1
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2008–09
2009 NBA Playoffs
The 2009 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2008–09 season. The playoffs started on April 18, 2009 with ABC, ESPN, TNT, and NBA TV broadcasting the games in the United States...
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 23 || 0 || 10.9 || .264 || .314 || .833 || 1.4 || .5 || .4 || .2 || 3.0
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2009–10
2010 NBA Playoffs
The 2010 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2009–10 season. The playoffs started on April 17, 2010 with ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, TNT, and NBA TV broadcasting the games in the United States...
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 10 || 0 || 7.6 || .435 || .400 || .833 || .8 || .5 || .2 || .0 || 3.1
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Career
| style="text-align:left;"|
| 65 || 0 || 14.7 || .366 || .384 || .879 || 1.6 || .6 || .4 || .1 || 5.0
Personal life
Vujačić was born in MariborMaribor
Maribor is the second largest city in Slovenia with 157,947 inhabitants . Maribor is also the largest and the capital city of Slovenian region Lower Styria and the seat of the Municipality of Maribor....
, present-day Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, to a Serbian
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
father and Slovenian mother. His father was a Serbian basketball coach, while his mother was a Slovenian volleyball player. His mother was playing volleyball for a top Yugoslav women's club, Branik Maribor, but quit her career at the age of 19 when she got pregnant with Vujačić. His parents divorced when he was 6, and he lived with his mother and soon afterwards with his stepfather. He has two siblings, a sister named Nina, and a brother named Aljoša. In addition to basketball, he enjoys playing volleyball, tennis, and football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
.
During his time with the Los Angeles Lakers he would often speak in Italian with Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bean Bryant is an American professional basketball player who plays shooting guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . Bryant enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Lower Merion High School, where he was recognized as the top high school...
, who is also fluent in the language.
He is engaged to professional tennis player Maria Sharapova
Maria Sharapova
Maria Yuryevna Sharapova ,. is a Russian professional tennis player and a former world no. 1. A US resident since 1994, Sharapova has won 24 WTA singles titles, including three Grand Slam singles titles at the 2004 Wimbledon, 2006 US Open and 2008 Australian Open...
.
External links
- Official Site
- Sasha Vujacic on TwitterTwitterTwitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
- Euroleague.net Profile