José Gregorio Vargas (born January 23, 1982) is a Venezuelan 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. He is a

shooting guard The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. A shooting guard's m ...

small forward The small forward (SF), also known as the three or swingman, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers but taller, larger, and stronger t ...

Professional career

Vargas has played in several Venezuelan and Mexican teams during his pro career. In 2001, he was selected as rookie of the year in the Venezuelan League. For the 2016–17 season, he signed with

La Unión de Formosa LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...

, of the top-tier level Argentine League.

National team career

Vargas is a member of the senior men's

Venezuelan national basketball team The Venezuela national basketball team is organized and run by the Venezuelan Basketball Federation (FVB). ( es, link=no, Federación Venezolana de Baloncesto) They won the 2015 FIBA AmeriCup. Venezuela qualified for two Summer Olympiads: 1992 ...

. As a member of the team at the

2015 FIBA Americas Championship The 2015 FIBA Americas Championship for Men, later known as the FIBA AmeriCup, was the FIBA Americas qualifying tournament for the 2016 Summer Olympics, in Brazil. This FIBA AmeriCup tournament was held in Mexico City, Mexico. The tournament was ...

, he helped Venezuela to defeat

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

and

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to win the gold medal. That was Venezuela's first FIBA Americas Championship, and allowed them to qualify for the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

Rio Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

, where Vargas also played.

Personal

Vargas' younger brother, Gregory, is also a professional basketball player. The two brothers have played together on the senior men's

References

External links

FIBA ProfileLatinbasket.com Profile“Grillito”: vida y pasión por el básquet
1982 births Living people Algodoneros de la Comarca players Basketball players at the 2016 Summer Olympics Basketball players at the 2019 Pan American Games La Unión basketball players Fuerza Regia de Monterrey players Guaros de Lara players Marinos B.B.C. players Ola Verde de Poza Rica players Olympic basketball players for Venezuela Shooting guards Small forwards Soles de Mexicali players Sportspeople from Caracas Trotamundos B.B.C. players Venezuelan men's basketball players Venezuelan expatriate basketball people in Argentina Venezuelan expatriate basketball people in Mexico 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup players Pan American Games competitors for Venezuela Basketball players at the 2015 Pan American Games {{Venezuela-basketball-bio-stub