Rafael Freire Luz (born February 11, 1992), commonly known as Rafa Luz, is a Brazilian-Spanish 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 (appro ...

player for MoraBanc Andorra of the

Liga ACB The Liga ACB, known as Liga Endesa for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional basketball division of the Spanish basketball league system. Administered by the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto (ACB), Liga ACB is contested by 18 teams, w ...

. He is a

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the Basketball positions, five positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position and is usually the shortest player ...

Early years

Rafa Luz, the brother of several international players for the Brazilian national women's team, was called up to the Brazilian national under-18 team, at the age of 15. In October 2009, after spending two seasons with Unicaja's junior youth teams, Luz got a Spanish passport.

Professional career

Luz signed for the

2010–11 ACB season The 2010–11 ACB season is the 28th season of the Liga ACB. The regular season started on September 30, 2010, and ended on May 15, 2011. Playoffs started on May 19, 2011, and ended on June 14. Regal FC Barcelona won their 16th title. Promotion ...

with the Spanish club Unicaja, but he ended up playing with the club's

farm team In sports, a farm team (also referred to as farm system, developmental system, feeder team, or nursery club) is generally a Team sport, team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any s ...

, Clínicas Rincón. In March 2011, he was loaned to the Spanish club

CB Granada Club Baloncesto Granada, S.A.D. was a professional basketball team based in Granada, Andalusia. The team was founded in 1994 and has had notable players during its history, including Curtis Borchardt, Darvin Ham, Jerod Ward, Giorgos Sigalas, Scott ...

, until the end of the season. There, he averaged 4.8 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game in the

Spanish ACB League The Liga ACB, known as Liga Endesa for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional basketball division of the Spanish basketball league system. Administered by the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto (ACB), Liga ACB is contested by 18 teams, w ...

. In August 2011, Unicaja loaned him to Spanish club Lucentum Alicante. Luz averaged 5.6 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game in the

2011–12 ACB season The 2011–12 ACB season is the 29th season of the Liga ACB, called also Liga Endesa (Spain), Endesa due to sponsorship reasons. The regular season started on 8 October 2011 and ended on 6 May 2012. Playoffs started on 17 May 2011 and ended on 16 ...

. In August 2012, Luz ended his contract with Unicaja Málaga, and signed a new contract with Spanish club Blu:sens Monbús Obradoiro. He played with the Galician team until 2015, when he left Spain, and returned to

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, after signing a new one-year deal with

Flamengo Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (; ), more commonly referred to as simply Flamengo, is a Brazilian multi sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, in the neighborhood of Gávea. It was founded and named after the Flamengo, Rio de Janeiro, Flamengo n ...

of the Brazilian NBB league. In July 2016, Luz signed a two-year deal with the Spanish club Baskonia. In July 2017, Luz split up from the Basque entity. On July 19, 2018, Luz signed with MoraBanc Andorra of the

. On July 16, 2019, Luz signed a two-year deal with UCAM Murcia. On February 28, 2021, he has signed with Nevėžis Kėdainiai of the

Lithuanian Basketball League Lithuanian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Lithuania, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe ** Lithuanian language ** Lithuanians, a Baltic ethnic group, native to Lithuania and the immediate geographical region ** L ...

. On July 14, 2021, he has signed with

Bilbao Basket Club Basket Bilbao Berri Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D., commonly known as Bilbao Basket (), also known as Surne Bilbao Basket for sponsorship reasons, is a professional basketball club based in Bilbao, Spain. The team plays in the Liga ACB. T ...

of the

National team career

Luz was a part of the senior men's

Brazilian national basketball team The Brazil national basketball team is governed by the Brazilian Basketball Confederation (), abbreviated as CBB. They have been a member of the International Federation of Basketball (FIBA), since 1935. Brazil's national basketball team remain ...

that won the silver medal at the

2011 FIBA Americas Championship The 2011 FIBA Americas Championship for Men, later known as the FIBA AmeriCup, was the qualifying tournament for FIBA Americas, at the 2012 Summer Olympics, in London. This FIBA AmeriCup tournament was held in Mar del Plata, Argentina, from Augus ...

, which was held in

Mar del Plata Mar del Plata is a city on the coast of the Argentine Sea, Atlantic Ocean, in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is the seat of General Pueyrredón Partido, General Pueyrredón district. Mar del Plata is the second largest city in Buenos Aires ...

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

. He also played at the

2013 FIBA Americas Championship The 2013 FIBA Americas Championship for Men, later known as the FIBA AmeriCup, was the qualifying tournament for FIBA Americas, for the 2014 FIBA World Cup, in Spain. This FIBA AmeriCup tournament was held in Caracas, Venezuela, from August 30, to ...

, the

2015 Pan American Games The 2015 Pan American Games (), officially the XVII Pan American Games () and commonly known as the Toronto 2015 Pan-Am Games (Toronto 2015), were a major international multi-sport event celebrated in the tradition of the Pan American Games, ...

, where he won a gold medal, and the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

.Rafael LUZ (BRA).
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References

External links

Rafa Luz
at acb.com
Rafa Luz
at eurobasket.com
Rafa Luz
at euroleague.net {{DEFAULTSORT:Luz, Rafa 1992 births Living people 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup players Baloncesto Málaga players Basketball players at the 2015 Pan American Games Basketball players at the 2016 Summer Olympics BC Andorra players Expatriate basketball people in Andorra BC Nevėžis players Bilbao Basket players Brazilian expatriate basketball people in Lithuania Brazilian expatriate basketball people in Spain Brazilian men's basketball players CB Axarquía players CB Granada players CB Lucentum Alicante players CB Murcia players Flamengo basketball players Liga ACB players Medalists at the 2015 Pan American Games Novo Basquete Brasil players Obradoiro CAB players Olympic basketball players for Brazil Pan American Games gold medalists for Brazil Pan American Games gold medalists in basketball Sportspeople from Araçatuba Point guards Saski Baskonia players Basketball players from São Paulo (state) 21st-century Brazilian sportsmen