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Tony Parker
Tony Parker
Parker during a Spurs game in December 2017
ASVEL Basket
Position: Owner
Personal information
Born: May 17, 1982 (1982-05-17) (age 41)
Bruges, Belgium
Listed height: 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight: 185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
High School: INSEP
(Paris, France)
NBA Draft: 2001 / Rnd: 1 / Pck: 28th
Selected by the San Antonio Spurs
Position: Point guard
Years active: 1999-2019 (20 years)
Career history
as player
as executive
  • ASVEL Basket (2009-present)
Career highlights and awards
  • NBA champion (2003, 2005, 2007, 2014)
  • NBA Finals MVP (2007)
  • NBA All-Star
    (20062007, 2009, 20122014)
  • 2× All-NBA Second Team (2012–2013)
  • All-NBA Third Team (2009)
  • NBA All-Rookie First Team (2002)
  • No. 9 retired by the San Antonio Spurs
  • NBA Skills Challenge champion (2012)
  • NBA Shooting Stars champion (2006)
    • FIBA EuroBasket MVP (2013)
  • FIBA Europe U-18 Championship MVP (2000)
  • European Player of the Year: Euroscar (2007)
  • L'Équipe Champion of Champions: French (2003)
  • French League Rising Star Award (2001)


William Anthony Parker (born May 17, 1982) is a French-American former professional basketball player and majority owner of ASVEL Basket in LNB Pro A.

The son of a professional basketball player, Parker played for two years for Paris Basket Racing in the French basketball league, before joining the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Spurs with the 28th overall pick in the 2001 NBA draft, and quickly became their starting point guard. Parker won four NBA championships (2003, 2005, 2007, and 2014), all of which were with the Spurs. He also played for ASVEL Basket in France during the 2011 NBA lockout, and finished his career after one season with the Charlotte Hornets. He retired as the ninth leading postseason scorer in NBA history.

Parker was named to six NBA All-Star games, three All-NBA Second Teams, an All-NBA Third Team and was named MVP of the 2007 NBA Finals. He was also a member of the All-Rookie Second Team and had his No. 9 retired by the Spurs.

While playing with the French national team, Parker was named the MVP of EuroBasket 2013, following his team's victory over Lithuania in the final. He finished as the tournament's top scorer, with an average of 19 points per game. In 2015, he became the all-time leading scorer in the EuroBasket competition, a record that was broken by Pau Gasol two years later.

Career[]

Before playing in the NBA, Parker played 2 years in the French championship (1999-2001) for the Paris Basket Racing team.

San Antonio Spurs (2001–2018)[]

When Parker played with the San Antonio Spurs against the Los Angeles Clippers on November 30, 2001, he became the third French player ever to play in an NBA game, the first being Tariq Abdul-Wahad, the second Jerome Moiso. (Dominique Wilkins was also born in France, but he is a U.S. citizen and was raised in North Carolina.) Parker is also the youngest member of the Spurs to play in the NBA at 19 years, 6 months and 13 days of age.

Parker, a starting point guard on the team, then helped his team win the 2003 NBA championship, when the Spurs led by Tim Duncan defeated the New Jersey Nets four games to two in the NBA Finals. The Spurs won the championship again in 2005, defeating the defending champions Detroit Pistons four games to three in the NBA Finals.

As of the end of the 2005 season, Parker has scored 4,404 career points in the NBA, for an average of 14.0 points per game, 1,668 assists for an average of 5.3 per game, and 792 rebounds, for 3.0 rebounds per game. On January 20, 2006, he scored a career high of 38 points in a Spurs victory over the Miami Heat.

With the French national basketball team, Tony Parker was a member of the national under 20 team and won the European under 20 championship in 2000, he was elected MVP of the tournament.

With the senior team, Parker has since played the European Championships 2001 and 2003 and became Captain since the 2003 European Championship. He was slated to lead France in the 2006 World Championships, but was unable to play after breaking a finger when he caught his hand in the jersey of a Brazil player in France's final warmup for the Worlds.

Player profile Parker plays the point guard position and has established himself as a potent scorer (career average 15.0 points). He is one of the quickest players in the NBA and often slashes to the basket for an easy layup or teardrop shot. Despite his relatively small stature for a basketball player (6'2"), he was leading the league in "points in the paint" for a large portion of the 2005-2006 NBA season. His shooting has improved dramatically since his rookie year, although outside shooting (especially three-pointers) still remains as the weaker part of his game. His field goal percentage of 54% (as of the 2005-2006 season) is very high for a point guard and is among the league leaders in that category. His speed also makes him a great fast break player.

His defense is above-average, although bigger and stronger players at his position often try to take advantage of his size. When he won his first ring in 2003, Parker contained Jason Kidd, considered one of the best point guards in the game. Parker is also a playoff veteran, having played 67 playoff games already, more playoff matches before his 24th birthday than anyone else [1].

Critics point out that his assist rate (5.4 assists per game career average) is mediocre, especially combined with an undesirably high 2.52 turnover-per-game ratio. In addition, his lifetime free throw average hovers around .700, which is considered below average for a guard.

In spite of his young age, Parker is already widely lauded as one of the premier point guards in the league. On February 9, 2006, for the first time in his career, Parker was selected to play in the 2006 NBA All-Star Game in Houston, Texas as a reserve guard for the Western Conference.

Charlotte Hornets (2018–2019)[]

On 6 July 2018, Parker agreed to a 2-year, $10 million contract with the Charlotte Hornets, where he would play his final season with the team.

On 10 June 2019, Parker announced his retirement from the NBA.

Personal life[]

Parker met actress Eva Longoria in November 2004. In August 2005, Longoria confirmed she and Parker were dating, and on 30 November 2006, the couple became engaged. Longoria, a Texas native from nearby Corpus Christi, was a courtside regular at Spurs home games. Parker was quoted during the 2007 NBA All-Star Game saying that, "Eva is doing everything, I'm just going to show up and say yes." They were married in a civil service on 6 July 2007, at a Paris city hall. That was followed by a full Catholic wedding ceremony at the Saint-Germain l'Auxerrois Church in Paris, France, on 7 July 2007. Fellow Frenchman, NBA player and future teammate, Boris Diaw was Parker's best man for the wedding.

In December 2007, tabloid websites and magazines published rumors that Parker had been having an extramarital affair with a model, Alexandra Paressant. Both Parker and Longoria vehemently denied these allegations through their spokespeople, saying "All high profile couples fall victim to these sorts of things in the course of their relationships. It appears that this is not the first time this woman has used an athlete to gain public notoriety." Parker initiated a $20 million lawsuit against the website that first reported the story, which later issued a full retraction and an apology, stating "X17online.com and X7 [sic], Inc. regret having been misled by Ms. Paressant and her representatives and apologize to Mr. Parker for any damage or inconvenience this may have caused him or his wife."

On 17 November 2010, Longoria filed for divorce in Los Angeles, citing "irreconcilable differences", and seeking spousal support from Parker. The couple had a prenuptial agreement that was signed in June 2007, the month before their wedding, and amended two years later in June 2009. Longoria believed that Parker had been cheating on her with another woman; Extra identified the other woman as Erin Barry, the wife of Brent Barry, Parker's former teammate, and revealed that the Barrys were also in the midst of a divorce. On 19 November 2010, Parker filed for divorce from Longoria in Bexar County, Texas on the grounds of "discord or conflict of personalities", thus establishing a legal battle over where the divorce case would be heard. Unlike Longoria's divorce petition, Parker's did not mention a prenuptial agreement and claimed that the parties "will enter into an agreement for the division of their estate". The divorce was finalized in Texas on 28 January 2011, the same day Longoria's lawyer filed papers to dismiss her Los Angeles petition.

Parker began dating French journalist Axelle Francine in 2011. In June 2013, it was reported that the couple was engaged. Parker and Axelle Francine married on 2 August 2014. They have two sons, Josh Parker, born in April 2014, and Liam Parker, born in July 2016. The couple announced their separation in August 2020.

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