PERSONALNamed
MVP of the 2006 FIBA World Championships in leading Spain to the gold
medal, despite missing the final due to a broken fifth metatarsal in
his left foot ... Played for Spain in the 2004 Olympics, averaging 22.4
ppg, and 7.3 rpg ... Parents are Marisa, a physician, and father,
Agusti, a hospital administrator... Has two younger brothers: Adria and
Marc, a 6-10 center who played high school basketball at Lausanne in
Memphis for two seasons before joining Pau's former team of F.C.
Barcelona back in Spain ... Pau and Marc were teammates on the Spanish
national team during the 2006 World Championships ... Parents both
played second-division basketball in Spain ... His parents and brothers
lived with him in Memphis during his rookie season ... Speaks three
languages: Catalan, Spanish and English ... Native of Catalonia, a
region on the coast of Spain ... Planned to become a doctor and
attended a year of medical school at the University of Barcelona at age
18 until pro basketball changed his plans ... Began playing at the age
of seven, and started as a point guard until he was 13 ... First
contact with the NBA was at age 12, watching the original Dream Team on
television win the Olympic Gold Medal in Barcelona in 1992 ... Lists
Michael Jordan as the most exciting player he's ever played against ...
Is a five-year sponsor of Tickets for Kids with "Pau's Amigos" ... Is a
member of the Grizzlies' All-Star Reading Team, and has participated in
the Grizzlies' Stay in School Challenge Reception ... Participated in
the Read to Achieve Tip-off event at the Collierville Town Library last
season where he read to kids, signed autographs and helped open the
reading and learning center inside the library ... Has done public
service announcements for Memphis City Schools Reads, UNICEF and
Memphis City Schools Fight Free Fifty, which encourages MCS students to
go 50 days without fighting in school ... Met with patients of St. Jude
Children's Research Hospital during their Thanks & Giving Campaign
last year... Along with the PSA he did for UNICEF, during the summer of
2005 he visited South Africa with the organization to act as an
ambassador in the fight against AIDS. Learn more about Pau's activities as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador.
PRE-NBAAn early entry candidate for the 2001 NBA Draft ... Member of one of
the top teams in the ACB, the top professional basketball league in
Spain ... Was a member of teams that won the ACB Championship and
Junior World Championship in 1999 ... Playing for Barcelona's junior
team, he was an integral part of the team that won the 1998 Albert
Schweitzer Tournament and the 1998 European Junior Championship ... Was
named MVP of the Spanish National Cup (Copa del Rey) after leading team
to victory in Malaga, Spain ... Delivered a breakthrough season in
2000-01 as a 20-year-old playing for F.C. Barcelona ... Played in 29 of
team's first 33 games, averaging 11.3 points and 5.2 rebounds in 23.8
minutes.
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