For the very first time two Dominicans have been selected in the first round of the NBA draft. Charlie Villanueva, who played for Connecticut at the college level, was selected number seven by the Toronto Raptors. Francisco Garcia, who played for the Louisville Cardinals in the NCAA, went in the 23rd spot to the Sacramento Kings. Back in 1988 two other Dominicans, Tito Horford and Jose “Grillo” Vargas were taken in the second round. According to the El Caribe, the Dominican community in Upper Manhattan and Brooklyn were dancing in the streets at the news of their compatriots’ success.
Villanueva, at 6’10” is a power forward and Garcia is known as a “swingman” or small forward, playing several positions. Villanueva played for the Connecticut Huskies for just two years, and in 2004 he led the team to the NCAA championship. In 2005 the team made the “Big Dance” but not the championship. Charlie had been projected to go in the number eight or nine spot, most likely to the Los Angeles Lakers. However, Toronto surprised everybody and took him with their pick in the number seven slot.
Francisco Garcia, who lived in the INVI neighborhood at Km 10 of Santo Domingo’s Ave. Independencia was with his mother and grandmother when the call came. He told El Caribe that he had not expected to be chosen so high in the draft, but he was very happy to be chosen by the Kings, since they play a style of basketball that he feels comfortable with. Garcia, who led Louisville for three seasons and last year took them to the Final Four in the NCAA Tournament, said that he has been working hard on his physical fitness and has added five inches to his vertical jump.