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Gregory Maxdier Vargas Díaz (born 18 February 1986) 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 court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
player who last played for
Hapoel Haifa Hapoel Haifa Football Club ( he, מועדון הכדורגל הפועל חיפה, ''Moadon HaKaduregel Hapoel Haifa'') is an Israeli football club located in the city of Haifa. The club won one championship (1998–99) and 4 Israeli cups (1 ...
of the Israeli Basketball Premier League. He was the
Israeli Basketball Premier League Defensive Player of the Year The Israeli Basketball Premier League Defensive Player of the Year, or Israeli Basketball Super League Defensive Player of the Year, is an award given to the best defensive player of each season of the Israeli Basketball Premier League, which is th ...
in 2016 and 2017, and the Israeli Premier League Assists Leader in 2017 and 2020.


Professional career

In the 2015–16 season, Vargas averaged 13.9 points and 6.4 assists per game in the
Israeli Premier League The Israeli Premier League ( he, ליגת העל, ''Ligat Ha`Al'', ), is a professional association football league which operates as the highest division of the Israeli Football League – the state's league of Israel. The league is contested b ...
, with
Maccabi Haifa Maccabi Haifa ( he, מכבי חיפה) is one of the biggest sports clubs in Israel and a part of the Maccabi association. It runs several sports clubs and teams in Haifa which have competed in a variety of sports over the years, such as Football ...
. Vargas also played against the NBA's
Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference ...
as a part of
Maccabi Haifa Maccabi Haifa ( he, מכבי חיפה) is one of the biggest sports clubs in Israel and a part of the Maccabi association. It runs several sports clubs and teams in Haifa which have competed in a variety of sports over the years, such as Football ...
, in an NBA preseason game. He scored over 20 points in 8 games, and had 10 or more assists in 3 games as well, during the 2015–16 season. On 7 July 2016, Vargas signed with French club
SLUC Nancy Stade Lorrain Université Club Nancy Basket, commonly referred to as SLUC Nancy Basket, is a French professional basketball club based in Nancy. The club currently competes in the LNB Pro A, the top league in France, and holds two league titles. S ...
. In November 2016, he left Nancy after appearing in eight games. On 17 December 2016, he returned to his former club Maccabi Haifa., During his season with the club he won Israeli Super League Defensive Player of the Year award and helped Haifa reaching the Israeli League Finals. He was the
Israeli Basketball Premier League Defensive Player of the Year The Israeli Basketball Premier League Defensive Player of the Year, or Israeli Basketball Super League Defensive Player of the Year, is an award given to the best defensive player of each season of the Israeli Basketball Premier League, which is th ...
in 2016 and 2017. He was also the Israeli Premier League Assists Leader in 2017. On 20 July 2017, Vargas signed with the Spanish club Baloncesto Fuenlabrada of the Liga ACB for the 2017–18 season. On 1 August 2019, Vargas returned to
Maccabi Haifa Maccabi Haifa ( he, מכבי חיפה) is one of the biggest sports clubs in Israel and a part of the Maccabi association. It runs several sports clubs and teams in Haifa which have competed in a variety of sports over the years, such as Football ...
for a third stint, signing a one-year deal. On 3 February 2020, Vargas recorded a triple-double 16 points, 12 rebounds and 13 assists, leading Haifa to a 93–84 win over
Hapoel Gilboa Galil Hapoel Gilboa Galil ( he, הפועל גלבוע גליל) is a professional basketball club that is based in north-east Israel. The club plays its home game in the Israeli Basketball Premier League (the top tier of Israeli basketball) in a 2,250- ...
. He was subsequently named Israeli League Round 18 MVP. He was the Israeli Premier League Assists Leader in 2019–20. On 2 July 2020, he signed with
Cluj ; hu, kincses város) , official_name=Cluj-Napoca , native_name= , image_skyline= , subdivision_type1 = County , subdivision_name1 = Cluj County , subdivision_type2 = Status , subdivision_name2 = County seat , settlement_type = City , le ...
of the Romanian Liga Națională. Vargas played with Cocodrilos de Caracas in the 2021 season of the Venezuelan SuperLiga and was named the league MVP after averaging 17.4 points and 7.7 assists for the team.


National team career

Vargas is a member of the senior men's Venezuelan national basketball team. 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
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
to win the gold medal. That was Venezuela's first
FIBA Americas Championship The FIBA AmeriCup (previously known as the FIBA Americas Championship) is the Americas Basketball Championship that takes place every four years between national teams of the Western Hemisphere continents. Since FIBA organised the entire West ...
, and allowed them to qualify for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, where Vargas also played with Venezuela.


Player profile

Vargas was described as a tough
FIBA The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. Originally known as the (hence FIBA), in 1989 it dropped the word ''amateur'' from its nam ...
player, who could be a
college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...
All-American, by
ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...
basketball analyst
Fran Fraschilla Francis John Fraschilla (born August 30, 1958) is an American basketball commentator and former college basketball coach. Career Fraschilla was an assistant coach at University of Rhode Island for Jack Kraft, Ohio University for Danny Nee and B ...
.


Personal

Vargas' older brother
José José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced ...
is also a professional basketball player. The two brothers have played together on the senior men's Venezuelan national team.


References


External links


FIBA ProfileEurobasket.com Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vargas, Gregory 1986 births Living people 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup players Baloncesto Fuenlabrada players Baloncesto Superior Nacional players Basketball players at the 2015 Pan American Games Basketball players at the 2016 Summer Olympics Basketball players at the 2019 Pan American Games Cocodrilos de Caracas players Guaros de Lara (basketball) players Halcones de Xalapa players Halcones Rojos Veracruz players Hapoel Haifa B.C. players Israeli Basketball Premier League players Liga ACB players Maccabi Haifa B.C. players Maratonistas de Coamo players Marinos B.B.C. players Olympic basketball players of Venezuela Pan American Games competitors for Venezuela Panteras de Miranda players People from Ocumare del Tuy Point guards Shooting guards SLUC Nancy Basket players Venezuelan expatriate basketball people in France Venezuelan expatriate basketball people in Israel Venezuelan expatriate basketball people in Mexico Venezuelan expatriate basketball people in Puerto Rico Venezuelan expatriate basketball people in Spain Venezuelan men's basketball players