Emanuel David Ginóbili, better known as Manu
Ginóbili (born 28 July 1977 in Bahía Blanca,
Argentina), is an Argentinian basketball player.
Coming from a family of professional basketballers,
he is a member of the Argentinian national
basketball team and the San Antonio Spurs in the
National Basketball Association (NBA).
Ginóbili spent the early half of his basketball
career in Argentina and Italy, where he won several
individual and team honors. His stint with Italian
side Kinder Bologna was particularly productive,
earning two Lega A Most Valuable Player awards, the
Euroleague 2000-01 Finals MVP award and the 2001
League Championship. The San Antonio Spurs drafted
the shooting guard as the 57th overall pick in the
1999 NBA Draft and is considered one of the biggest
draft steals of all time. Ginóbili returned to Italy
and only joined the Spurs in 2002. He did not take
long to establish himself as a key player for the
Spurs, and has since won three NBA championships as
well as being named an All-Star in 2005. In the
2007–08 season, he was named the NBA Sixth Man of
the Year.
With the national team, Ginóbili has also enjoyed
success. He made his début in 1998, and was a member
of the team which won the gold medal during the 2004
Olympics. Hailed as one of the finest Europe-based
players to grace the NBA with his high-tempo and
intensive game, Ginóbili is also the only basketball
player ever to win a Euroleague title, an NBA
championship, and an Olympic gold medal.
Ginóbili comes from a family of basketball players.
His eldest brother, Leandro, retired in 2003 after
seven years in the Argentine basketball league,
while Sebastián has played in both the local league
and the Spanish Liga Española de Baloncesto. Their
father Jorge was a coach at a club in Bahía Blanca,
where Ginóbili learned to play the game. Given the
proliferation of basketball clubs in Bahía Blanca
and his idolization of Michael Jordan, Ginóbili's
love for basketball grew rapidly.
Like many Argentines, Ginóbili is a descendant of
Italian immigrants, and he has dual citizenship with
Argentina and Italy. As a result of his travels, he
can speak Spanish, Italian and English fluently. In
his free time, Ginóbili enjoys surfing the internet,
listening to Latin music, watching movies and
relaxing with his friends. In 2004, he married
Marianela Orono.
