Charlie Alexander Villanueva Mejia (born August 24, 1984) is a Dominican-American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player who played for the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games a ...

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 196 ...

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at L ...

and

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Southwest Division. Th ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball sports league, league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues i ...

(NBA). The son of immigrants from the Dominican Republic, Villanueva was raised in

Elmhurst, Queens Elmhurst (formerly Newtown) is a neighborhood in the borough of Queens in New York City. It is bounded by Roosevelt Avenue on the north; the Long Island Expressway on the south; Junction Boulevard on the east; and the New York Connecting R ...

, New York City. He was drafted at the age of 20 with the seventh overall pick in the

2005 NBA draft The 2005 NBA draft took place on June 28, 2005, in the Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City. In this draft, NBA teams took turns selecting amateur college basketball players and other first-time eligible players, such as players fr ...

by the

. He also holds Dominican citizenship and has represented the Dominican Republic national team in international competitions.

Personal life

Villanueva has an autoimmune skin disease known as alopecia universalis, a variation of

alopecia areata Alopecia areata, also known as spot baldness, is a condition in which hair is lost from some or all areas of the body. Often, it results in a few bald spots on the scalp, each about the size of a coin. Psychological stress and illness are pos ...

. This prevents the growth of hair on the

scalp The scalp is the anatomical area bordered by the human face at the front, and by the neck at the sides and back. Structure The scalp is usually described as having five layers, which can conveniently be remembered as a mnemonic: * S: The ski ...

and/or elsewhere on the body, but otherwise is not physically painful, dangerous, or life-threatening. Villanueva is a spokesman for the NAAF (National Alopecia Areata Foundation),Charlie Villanueva Biography
/ref> and received the February 2006 Community Assist Award from the NBA for his work with the organization. A first-generation Dominican-American, Villanueva is fluent in Spanish, as it is the language he speaks with his family. Villanueva has three brothers, all named Roberto, a.k.a. Rob, after their father's name: Rob Antonio, Rob Elia, Rob Carlos. Announced in September 2015, Villanueva is working with two of the three brothers on a documentary titled "What is Alopecia", in order to continue his advocacy efforts to educate, create awareness and support the alopecia community. Villanueva has two children.

High school career

During his freshman year, Villanueva attended Newtown High School in

Queens, New York Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

, where he was a teammate of future NBA player

Smush Parker William Henry "Smush" Parker (born June 1, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA), the NBA D-League and several leagues overseas. Parker played shooting guard in college ...

. He spent his next three years at

Blair Academy Blair Academy is a coeducational, boarding and day school for students in high school. The school serves students from ninth through twelfth grades as well as a small post-graduate class. The school's campus is located on a campus in Blairs ...

Blairstown, New Jersey Blairstown is a township in Warren County, New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, Blairstown's population was 5,704. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 5,967 Luol Deng Luol Ajou Deng (born 16 April 1985) is a British former professional basketball player. He was a two-time NBA All-Star and was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team in 2012. Born in what is now South Sudan, Deng fled the country with his ...

. Villanueva received All-American honors as a senior and was named New Jersey Co-Player of the Year. He entered the

2003 NBA draft The 2003 NBA draft was held on June 26, 2003, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The NBA announced that 41 college and high school players and a record 31 international players had filed as early-entry candidates ...

, but withdrew his eligibility so he could play college basketball for the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from H ...

. Considered a five-star recruit by Rivals.com, Villanueva was listed as the No. 2 power forward and the No. 5 player in the nation in 2003.

College career

Villanueva originally gave a verbal commitment to play for the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Uni ...

, but after

Bill Self Billy Eugene Self Jr. (born December 27, 1962) is an American basketball coach. He is the head men's basketball coach at the University of Kansas, a position he has held since 2003. During his 19 seasons as head coach, he has led the Jayhawks to ...

left the Illini for the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...

, Villanueva withdrew his commitment. He considered following Self to the Jayhawks, but instead opted to play for the

. In his freshman year at UConn, Villanueva earned

Big East The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference that competes in NCAA Division I in ten men's sports and twelve women's sports. Headquartered in New York City, the eleven full-member schools are primarily located in Northeast and ...

All-Rookie Team honors and was a key reserve member of the 2004 NCAA National Championship team. As a sophomore at UConn, he averaged 13.6 points and 8.3 rebounds, leading the team in scoring and receiving team

MVP In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

and second-team All-Big East honors. Villanueva declared for the

following his sophomore season, thus forgoing his final two years of college eligibility.

Professional career

Toronto Raptors (2005–2006)

Villanueva was selected by the

with the seventh overall pick in the

. Despite being panned by critics as soon as his name was called in the draft, Villanueva responded with a solid rookie season. He averaged 13.0 points and 6.4 rebounds in 81 games. He finished second among rookies in points and rebounds, and third in minutes and blocked shots. He also tallied 12 double-doubles and set the Raptors' rookie records for points (48) and rebounds (18) in a game. He also appeared in the Rookie Challenge and was named to the All-NBA Rookie first team.

Milwaukee Bucks (2006–2009)

On June 30, 2006, Villanueva was traded to the

in exchange for

T. J. Ford Terrance Jerod Ford Sr. (born March 24, 1983) is an American former professional basketball player. Having been awarded numerous top basketball accolades in high school and college, Ford entered the 2003 NBA draft and was selected eighth overall ...

. On April 9, 2008, Villanueva scored a season-high 38 points and made a career-high seven 3-point shots during a loss against his former team, the Raptors. In March 2009, Villanueva was reprimanded by Bucks coach

Scott Skiles Scott Allen Skiles Sr. (born March 5, 1964) is an American former basketball coach and player. He coached the Phoenix Suns, Chicago Bulls, Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic. A first-round draft pick out of Michigan State University, Skiles played ...

for posting a message on his

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

account during halftime of the Bucks– Celtics game. Despite the mishap, Villanueva's 2008–09 season turned out to be a career-best season for him as he averaged 16.2 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. On March 3, 2009, Villanueva scored 24 points and grabbed 15 rebounds during a loss to the

New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

Detroit Pistons (2009–2014)

On July 8, 2009, Villanueva signed a five-year, $40 million contract with the

. Villanueva had scored a career high 16.7 points per game with Milwaukee the previous season. He was described by Pistons President of Basketball Operations

Joe Dumars Joe Dumars III ( ; born May 24, 1963) is an American professional basketball executive and former player who is the executive vice president and head of basketball operations of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He could play either shoo ...

as "a versatile big man who can play in the post and score from the perimeter as well." He and fellow Pistons signee

Ben Gordon Benjamin Ashenafi Gordon (born April 4, 1983) is an American former professional basketball player. Gordon played for 11 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and he played college basketball for the University of Connecticut, ...

were described as "key pieces to our roster next season." In November 2010, Villanueva

tweeted Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

that

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

forward

Kevin Garnett Kevin Maurice Garnett ( ; born May 19, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who played for 21 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed KG by his initials, and the "Big Ticket" for his emphatic dunki ...

, a known trash-talker, called him a "cancer patient" during a Celtics blowout win over Detroit. In response, Garnett insisted that "My comment to Charlie Villanueva was in fact 'You are cancerous to your team and our league,'" and that he meant no insult to those afflicted with cancer. Celtics coach

Doc Rivers Glenn Anton "Doc" Rivers (born October 13, 1961) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). After playing for Marquette Universit ...

backed up Garnett's correction. On January 2, 2013, Villanueva was fined $25,000 by the NBA for delivering a

flagrant foul In basketball, a flagrant foul is a personal foul that involves excessive or violent contact that could injure the fouled player. A flagrant foul may be unintentional or purposeful; the latter type is also called an "intentional foul" in the Nati ...

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

guard Isaiah Thomas the previous night. Villanueva had been ejected from the game for elbowing Thomas as Thomas drove to the basket. The NBA league office added the fine after reviewing the play.

Dallas Mavericks (2014–2016)

On September 23, 2014, Villanueva signed with the

. On February 9, 2015, he scored a season-high 26 points in a loss to the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...

. On August 6, 2015, Villanueva re-signed with the Mavericks to a one-year deal.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, 81 , , 36 , , 29.1 , , .463 , , .327 , , .706 , , 6.4 , , 1.1 , , .7 , , .8 , , 13.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...

, 39 , , 17 , , 25.2 , , .470 , , .337 , , .820 , , 5.8 , , .9 , , .6 , , .3 , , 11.8 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 76 , , 31 , , 24.1 , , .435 , , .297 , , .783 , , 6.1 , , 1.0 , , .4 , , .5 , , 11.7 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 78 , , 47 , , 26.9 , , .447 , , .345 , , .838 , , 6.7 , , 1.8 , , .6 , , .7 , , 16.2 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

, 78 , , 16 , , 23.7 , , .439 , , .351 , , .815 , , 4.7 , , .7 , , .6 , , .7 , , 11.9 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 76 , , 11 , , 21.9 , , .442 , , .387 , , .767 , , 3.9 , , .6 , , .6 , , .6 , , 11.1 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 13 , , 0 , , 13.8 , , .385 , , .333 , , .857 , , 3.7 , , .5 , , .5 , , .4 , , 7.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 69 , , 0 , , 15.8 , , .377 , , .347 , , .551 , , 3.5 , , .8 , , .4 , , .6 , , 6.8 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 20 , , 0 , , 9.0 , , .380 , , .250 , , .571 , , 1.7 , , .3 , , .2 , , .3 , , 4.6 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Dallas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County ...

, 64 , , 1 , , 10.6 , , .414 , , .376 , , .571 , , 2.3 , , .3 , , .2 , , .3 , , 6.3 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 62 , , 4 , , 10.7 , , .382 , , .273 , , .917 , , 2.5 , , .4 , , .3 , , .2 , , 5.1 , - class="sortbottom" , align="center" colspan="2", Career , 656 , , 163 , , 20.7 , , .435 , , .341 , , .772 , , 4.6 , , .8 , , .5 , , .5 , , 10.4

Playoffs

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, 5 , , 0 , , 8.7 , , .440 , , .421 , , .000 , , 2.6 , , .6 , , .2 , , .2 , , 6.0 , - , align="left" ,

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

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, 4 , , 0 , , 5.3 , , .250 , , .333 , , 1.000 , , 0.5 , , .2 , , .2 , , .2 , , 2.3 , - class="sortbottom" , align="center" colspan="2", Career , 9 , , 0 , , 7.0 , , .345 , , .377 , , 1.000 , , 1.6 , , .4 , , .2 , , .2 , , 4.3

National team career

The son of immigrants from the Dominican Republic, Villanueva was raised in

, New York City. Villanueva represented the United States at youth levels but in 2009, he switched sports citizenship to the Dominican Republic. He played for the

Dominican Republic national basketball team The Dominican Republic national basketball team ( es, Selección de Baloncesto de República Dominicana) represents the Dominican Republic in men's international basketball competitions. In 2011 and 2012, John Calipari, the head coach of the Un ...

in the

2009 FIBA Americas Championship The 2009 FIBA Americas Championship, later known as the FIBA AmeriCup, was the continental championship held by FIBA Americas, for North, Central and South America and the Caribbean. This FIBA AmeriCup championship served as a qualifying tourname ...

References

External links

* *
Founder of Alopecia Apparel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Villanueva, Charlie 1984 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Canada American men's basketball players American sportspeople of Dominican Republic descent Basketball players from New York City Basketball players from New Jersey Blair Academy alumni Dallas Mavericks players Detroit Pistons players Dominican Republic men's basketball players McDonald's High School All-Americans Milwaukee Bucks players National Basketball Association players from the Dominican Republic Newtown High School alumni People from Elmhurst, Queens People with alopecia universalis Power forwards (basketball) Sportspeople from Queens, New York Toronto Raptors draft picks Toronto Raptors players UConn Huskies men's basketball players