{{short description|Brazilian basketball player (born 1992)}} {{Portuguese name|Freire|Luz}} {{Use mdy dates|date=August 2012}} {{Infobox basketball biography | name = Rafa Luz | image = Rafa Luz MoraBanc Andorra 2025.png | image_size = | caption = Luz with MoraBanc Andorra in 2025 | position = Point guard | height_ft = 6 | height_in = 2 | weight_lb = 208 | league = Liga ACB | team = MoraBanc Andorra | number = 5 | nationality = Brazilian / Spanish | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1992|2|11}} | birth_place = Araçatuba, Brazil | high_school = | college = | career_start = 2009 | career_end = | years1 = 2009–2012 | team1 = Unicaja | years2 = 2009–2010 | team2 = →Axarquía | years3 = 2011 | team3 = →CB Granada | years4 = 2011–2012 | team4 = →Lucentum | years5 = 2012–2015 | team5 = Obradoiro | years6 = 2015–2016 | team6 = Flamengo | years7 = 2016–2017 | team7 = Baskonia | years8 = 2017–2018 | team8 = Franca | years9 = 2018–2019 | team9 = Andorra | years10 = 2019–2021 | team10 = Murcia | years11 = 2021 | team11 = Nevėžis Kėdainiai | years12 = 2021–2022 | team12 = Bilbao Basket | years13 = 2022–present | team13 = Andorra | highlights = * NBB champion (2016) | medaltemplates = {{Medal|Sport|Men's basketball}} {{Medal|Country|{{bk|BRA}}}} {{Medal|Competition|FIBA AmeriCup}} {{Medal|Silver|2011 Mar del Plata|}} {{MedalSilver|2022 Brazil|}} {{Medal|Competition|FIBA South American Championship}} {{Medal|Bronze|2014 Venezuela|}} {{Medal|Competition|Pan American Games}} {{Medal|Gold|2015 Toronto|}} }} '''Rafael Freire Luz''' (born February 11, 1992), commonly known as '''Rafa Luz''', is a Brazilian-Spanish professional basketball player for MoraBanc Andorra of the Liga ACB. He is a point guard.
==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.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090906163603/http://www.basketaxarquia.com/leb-oro/cumbre-por-rafael-freire/ Cumbre por Rafael Freire {{in lang|es}}.]</ref>
==Professional career== Luz signed for the 2010–11 ACB season with the Spanish club Unicaja, but he ended up playing with the club's farm team, Clínicas Rincón. In March 2011, he was loaned to the Spanish club CB Granada, 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. 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.
In August 2012, Luz ended his contract with Unicaja Málaga, and signed a new contract with Spanish club Blu:sens Monbús Obradoiro.<ref>[http://www.hoy.es/agencias/20120822/deportes/baloncesto/rafa-freire-me-identifico-filosofia_201208221517.html Rafa Freire: "Me identifico con la filosofía del Obradoiro"]; Hoy.es. 22 August 2012. Retrieved: 16 July 2016 {{in lang|es}}.</ref> He played with the Galician team until 2015, when he left Spain, and returned to Brazil, after signing a new one-year deal with Flamengo of the Brazilian NBB league.
In July 2016, Luz signed a two-year deal with the Spanish club Baskonia.<ref>{{cite web|title=Rafa Luz is the second signing for the 2016-17 season - Saski Baskonia|url=http://www.baskonia.com/en/rafa-luz-is-the-second-signing-for-2016-17-season/|website=Saski Baskonia|accessdate=15 July 2016|date=15 July 2016}}</ref> In July 2017, Luz split up from the Basque entity.<ref>{{cite web|title=¡Gracias por todo, Rafa Luz! - Saski Baskonia|url=http://www.baskonia.com/gracias-rafa-luz/|website=Saski Baskonia|accessdate=3 July 2017|language=es-ES|date=3 July 2017}}</ref>
On July 19, 2018, Luz signed with MoraBanc Andorra of the Liga ACB.<ref>{{cite news |title=ACB.COM - Luz para el MoraBanc Andorra |url=http://www.acb.com/redaccion.php?id=142234 |accessdate=19 July 2018 |work=www.acb.com |date=19 July 2018 |language=es-ES |archive-date=July 19, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180719143347/http://www.acb.com/redaccion.php?id=142234 |url-status=dead }}</ref> On July 16, 2019, Luz signed a two-year deal with UCAM Murcia.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ucam Murcia signs Rafa Luz |url=https://sportando.basketball/en/ucam-murcia-signs-rafa-luz/ |accessdate=19 July 2019 |work=Sportando |date=19 July 2019}}</ref>
On February 28, 2021, he has signed with Nevėžis Kėdainiai of the Lithuanian Basketball League.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://sportando.basketball/en/rafa-luz-reportedly-close-to-signing-with-nevezis/|title=Rafa Luz reportedly close to signing with Nevezis|date=February 28, 2021|newspaper=Sportando|language=En|access-date=March 8, 2021|last1=Lupo |first1=Nicola }}</ref>
On July 14, 2021, he has signed with Bilbao Basket of the Liga ACB.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://sportando.basketball/en/rafa-luz-joins-bilbao-basket/|title=Rafa Luz joins Bilbao Basket|date=July 14, 2021|newspaper=Sportando|language=En|access-date=August 5, 2021|last1=Carchia |first1=Emiliano }}</ref>
==National team career== Luz was a part of the senior men's Brazilian national basketball team that won the silver medal at the 2011 FIBA Americas Championship, which was held in Mar del Plata, Argentina. He also played at the 2013 FIBA Americas Championship, the 2015 Pan American Games, where he won a gold medal, and the 2016 Summer Olympics.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20161220134514/http://archive.fiba.com/pages/eng/fa/p/rpp//q/rafael%20luz/pid//_//players.html Rafael LUZ (BRA).]</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *[http://www.acb.com/jugador.php?id=745 Rafa Luz] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190226160227/http://www.acb.com/jugador.php?id=745 |date=February 26, 2019 }} at acb.com {{in lang|es}} *[http://basketball.eurobasket.com/player/Rafael-Freire_Luz/Spain/Saski_Baskonia_Vitoria/117866 Rafa Luz] at eurobasket.com *[http://www.euroleague.net/competition/players/showplayer?pcode=001633&seasoncode=E2016 Rafa Luz] at euroleague.net
{{BC Andorra current roster}} {{Navboxes |title= Brazil squads |bg = green |fg = yellow |list1= {{Brazil Squad 2011 FIBA Americas Championship}} {{Brazil squad 2022 FIBA AmeriCup}} }}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Luz, Rafa}} Category:1992 births Category:Living people Category:2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup players Category:21st-century Brazilian sportsmen Category:Baloncesto Málaga players Category:Basketball players at the 2015 Pan American Games Category:Basketball players at the 2016 Summer Olympics Category:Basketball players from São Paulo (state) Category:BC Andorra players Category:BC Nevėžis players Category:Bilbao Basket players Category:Brazilian expatriate basketball people in Lithuania Category:Brazilian expatriate basketball people in Spain Category:Brazilian men's basketball players Category:CB Axarquía players Category:CB Granada players Category:CB Lucentum Alicante players Category:CB Murcia players Category:Expatriate basketball people in Andorra Category:Flamengo basketball players Category:Liga ACB players Category:Medalists at the 2015 Pan American Games Category:Novo Basquete Brasil players Category:Obradoiro CAB players Category:Olympic basketball players for Brazil Category:Pan American Games basketball players for Brazil Category:Pan American Games gold medalists for Brazil Category:Pan American Games gold medalists in basketball Category:Point guards Category:Saski Baskonia players Category:Sportspeople from Araçatuba