Melvin Ray Sanders (born January 3, 1981) is an 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 court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player. He played for the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball 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 in the United St ...

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its home ...

Professional career

A graduate of

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

, Sanders, a

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

and forward, played for

Varese Varese ( , , or ; lmo, label= Varesino, Varés ; la, Baretium; archaic german: Väris) is a city and ''comune'' in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, north-west of Milan. The population of Varese in 2018 has reached 80,559. It is the c ...

in the

Italian league The Italic League or Most Holy League was an international agreement concluded in Venice on 30 August 1454, between the Papal States, the Republic of Venice, the Duchy of Milan, the Republic of Florence, and the Kingdom of Naples, following the Tr ...

and

Telindus Oostende Basketball Club Oostende, for sponsorship reasons Filou Oostende, is a Belgian professional basketball team. The club is based in Ostend and was founded in 1970. The club competes domestically in the BNXT League and internationally in the Baske ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, the

Dakota Wizards The Dakota Wizards were an American professional basketball team based in Bismarck, North Dakota. They played in the NBA Development League from 2006 until 2012. After the 2011–12 season, the team relocated to Santa Cruz, California, and now pl ...

of the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), and the NBA Development League's

Fayetteville Patriots The Fayetteville Patriots were an NBA Development League team based in Fayetteville, North Carolina, United States. Its logo design features a bald eagle's head and a basketball in the middle of a capital letter "P" with stars and stripes filling ...

. He earned All-CBA Second Team and All-Defensive Team honors with the Wizards in 2005. During the 2005-06 NBA season, he signed 10-day contract stints with the

. After his fourth such contract (including training camp) expired, on March 26, 2006, the Spurs signed Sanders for the remainder of the season. On January 9, 2007, he signed a contract with Pau-Orthez of the French League. He averaged 10.5 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 10 Euroleague games, and also helped Pau win the French Cup. On July 20, 2007, Sanders signed with Panellinios of the Greek League.Panellinios tabs Melvin Sanders
/ref> However, in mid-December 2007 he was brought out of his contract by one of the top clubs in the ACB Unicaja Malaga after seeing limited action due to a broken

collarbone The clavicle, or collarbone, is a slender, S-shaped long bone approximately 6 inches (15 cm) long that serves as a strut between the shoulder blade and the sternum (breastbone). There are two clavicles, one on the left and one on the right ...

sustained in a car accident during the preseason. On December 25, 2007, he signed with

Unicaja Unicaja is a Spanish savings bank based in Málaga and chartered as a caja de ahorros providing retail banking services. The banks full name is ''Monte de Piedad y Caja de Ahorros de Ronda, Cádiz, Almería, Málaga y Antequera'' after the n ...

of the Spanish ACB.Unicaja adds guard Melvin Sanders
/ref> On July 10, 2008, Sanders was signed by Kalise Gran Canaria of the ACB.Kalise Gran Canaria inks Melvin Sanders
/ref> He signed with BC Minsk-2006 in September 2010.Three rookies from the USA and St. Vincent and Grenadine will reinforce basketball club "Minsk 2006"
/ref> In February 2011, he signed with

Menorca Bàsquet Menorca Bàsquet, S.A.D. was a professional basketball team based in Menorca, Balearic Islands. On July 5, 2012 the club announced its dissolution after it was forced to renounce to its third promotion to Liga ACB The Liga ACB, known as Liga ...

. Later that year, he signed with Hacettepe Üniversitesi of the

Turkish Basketball League Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and ...

. In August 2012, he signed with Basket Barcellona of the Italian Second League. On March 6, 2013, he signed a contract with

Pınar Karşıyaka Pınar is a common feminine Turkish given name. In Turkish, "Pınar" means "Spring" (of water), and/or "Fountain". Notable people called Pınar include: Given name * Pinar Heggernes (born 1969), Turkish-born Norwegian computer scientist * Pına ...

for the remainder of that season. In December 2013, Sanders signed with CB Valladolid and left the team on 21 January 2014 because of non-payment from the club.Sanders escapes from CB Valladolid
ACB.com 21 January 2014

References

External links

EurocupBasketball.com profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanders, Melvin 1981 births Living people African-American basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Belarus American expatriate basketball people in Belgium American expatriate basketball people in France American expatriate basketball people in Greece American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Spain American expatriate basketball people in Turkey Basketball players from Kansas American men's basketball players BC Oostende players Baloncesto Málaga players BC Tsmoki-Minsk players CB Gran Canaria players CB Valladolid players Dakota Wizards (CBA) players Élan Béarnais players Fayetteville Patriots players Greek Basket League players Hacettepe Üniversitesi B.K. players Junior college men's basketball players in the United States Karşıyaka basketball players Liga ACB players Menorca Bàsquet players Oklahoma State Cowboys basketball players Pallacanestro Varese players Panellinios B.C. players People from Liberal, Kansas San Antonio Spurs players Shooting guards Small forwards Undrafted National Basketball Association players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people