Charlie Villanueva

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Charlie Villanueva

Position	Power forward
Height	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
Weight	240 lb (109 kg)
Team	Milwaukee Bucks
Nationality	United States
Born	August 24, 1984 (age 22) Queens, New York
College	UConn
Draft	7th overall, 2005 Toronto Raptors
Pro career	2005–present
Former teams	Toronto Raptors (2005 – 2006)

Charlie Alexander Villanueva (born August 24, 1984 in Queens, New York) is an American NBA player for the Milwaukee Bucks.

Villanueva is a first-generation American, son of Dominican immigrants, Roberto Villanueva and Doris Mejia. He grew up in Queens before moving to New Jersey and resides in Brooklyn, New York, which he calls home. A 6'11" power forward, he was drafted 7th overall by the Toronto Raptors in the 2005 NBA Draft.

Contents 1 High school 2 College career 3 NBA career 4 Personal 5 Honors 6 Trivia 7 Notes 8 External links

[edit] High school

He attended high school at Blair Academy, with current Chicago Bulls player Luol Deng, where he earned All-American honors as a senior as well as New Jersey Co-player of the Year. He originally entered the 2003 NBA Draft but decided to withdraw and attend college at the University of Connecticut (UConn).

[edit] College career

In his first year at UConn, Villanueva was named to the Big East All-Rookie 2nd Team and was a key reserve on the 2004 NCAA Men's Basketball National Champion Connecticut Huskies team. As a sophomore, Villanueva was named second-team All-Big East after averaging 13.6 points and 8.3 rebounds per game.

In the Summer of 2004, Villanueva was a member of the gold medal-winning United States 21 and under team at the World Championships.

[edit] NBA career

The Toronto Raptors were widely criticized for selecting Villanueva seventh overall in the 2005 NBA Draft^[1], but he responded with a solid rookie campaign, ranking second among rookies with 13.0 ppg and 6.4 rpg. He was second in the voting for the 2005-2006 Rookie of the Year Award^[2] and was selected to the 2005-06 T-Mobile NBA All-Rookie First Team.

On March 26, 2006, Villanueva set a career high and Raptors rookie record for points in a game with 48 in a 116-125 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. His point total was the most by a rookie since Allen Iverson scored 50 in 1997.

Villanueva was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks for point guard T.J. Ford and cash considerations on June 30, 2006.

As of February 27, 2007, Villanueva is averaging 12.6 points, 6.0 rebounds, 0.9 assists, and 0.6 steals.

[edit] Personal

Villanueva suffers from Alopecia areata, an autoimmune skin disease. This results in hair loss on the scalp and/or elsewhere on the body, but the disease is not otherwise life-threatening or harmful. Villanueva has become a spokesman for the NAAF (National Alopecia Areata Foundation) to help others growing up with the same condition.^[3] In March 2006, the NBA recognized his efforts by giving him the league's Community Assist Award for the month of February.^[4]

[edit] Honors

• 2005 - Named NBA Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month for December
• 2006 - Selected to compete in the 2006 T-Mobile Rookie Challenge in Houston
• 2006 - All-NBA Rookie First Team
• 2007 - Selected to compete in the 2007 T-Mobile Rookie Challenge in Las Vegas

[edit] Trivia

• His idol growing up was Reggie Miller. His regular number is #3, but he wears #31 as a tribute to Miller, who retired after the 2004-05 season.^{[citation needed]}
• Villanueva is known by the nicknames CV3, Charlie V., CV Smooth, and The Big Smooth.

[edit] Notes

1. ^ "Raptors trade Charlie Villanueva to Bucks for T.J. Ford and cash", CBC, June 1, 2006.
2. ^ 2006 Awards. Basketball-Reference.com.
3. ^ Charlie Villanueva Biography, National Alopecia Areata Foundation, accessed 8 February 2007.
4. ^ http://www.nba.com/raptors/news/pressrelease_CV31_commAssist_060313.html

[edit] External links

• ESPN.com
• NBA.com
• SI.com
• Yahoo Sports
• Charlie Villanueva's Home Page
• National Alopecia Areata Foundation
• The Charlie Villanueva Foundation - Still under construction
• Charlie Inspires (REAL video download of Charlie Villanueva inspiring other sufferers of alopecia areata)

2005 NBA Draft
First Round Andrew Bogut | Marvin Williams | Deron Williams | Chris Paul | Raymond Felton | Martell Webster | Charlie Villanueva | Channing Frye | Ike Diogu | Andrew Bynum | Fran Vázquez | Yaroslav Korolev | Sean May | Rashad McCants | Antoine Wright | Joey Graham | Danny Granger | Gerald Green | Hakim Warrick | Julius Hodge | Nate Robinson | Jarrett Jack | Francisco García | Luther Head | Johan Petro | Jason Maxiell | Linas Kleiza | Ian Mahinmi | Wayne Simien | David Lee
Second Round Salim Stoudamire | Daniel Ewing | Brandon Bass | C.J. Miles | Ricky Sánchez | Ersan İlyasova | Ronny Turiaf | Travis Diener | Von Wafer | Monta Ellis | Roko Ukić | Chris Taft | Mile Ilić | Martynas Andriuškevičius | Louis Williams | Erazem Lorbek | Bracey Wright | Mickaël Gelabale | Andray Blatche | Ryan Gomes | Robert Whaley | Axel Hervelle | Orien Greene | Dijon Thompson | Lawrence Roberts | Amir Johnson | Marcin Gortat | Uroš Slokar | Cenk Akyol | Alex Acker