Ronny Turiaf

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Ronny Turiaf

Position	Power Forward
Height	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Weight	249 lb (113 kg)
Team	Los Angeles Lakers
Nationality	France
Born	January 13, 1983 Le Robert, Martinique
College	Gonzaga
Draft	37th overall, 2005 Los Angeles Lakers
Pro career	2006 – present
Awards	WCC Player of the Year in 2005

Ronny Turiaf (born January 13, 1983 in Le Robert, Martinique) is a French basketball player, selected in the second round (37th pick overall) of the 2005 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Lakers. He primarily plays power forward. His first name was historically pronounced as rhyming with pony, however, as of the 2006-2007 season, he has requested that broadcasters pronounce his first name in the traditional American pronunciation.

Turiaf spent most of his childhood in Martinique, moving at age 15 to Paris to attend Insep (National Institute of Physical Education), which combines secondary school with elite-level athletic training. By 1999, he had made the French under-18 national team, and in 2000 he and future NBA stars Tony Parker, Boris Diaw, and Mickael Pietrus helped lead France to the European under-18 championship.

In 2001, he left France to attend Gonzaga University, playing four years. In his last three years at Gonzaga, he was named a first-team All-West Coast Conference player, and was the conference's Player of the Year in his senior year (2004-05). For his career at Gonzaga, he averaged 13.6 points and 6.8 rebounds per game, averaging 15.9 points and 9.5 rebounds as a senior.

After being drafted, Turiaf signed his rookie contract with the Lakers. Then, while preparing to play with the Lakers' summer league team in 2005, he underwent a physical which uncovered a heart-related problem; a more comprehensive exam found an enlarged aortic root, known as aneurysm of sinus of Valsalva. As a result of Turiaf's condition, the Lakers voided his rookie contract. However, given the doctors' prognosis that successful surgery should correct the problem and possibly allow Turiaf to return to a basketball career, the team paid for his surgery after the NBA did not prohibit them from doing so.

Turiaf underwent open-heart surgery on July 26, 2005. He was initially expected to miss the entire 2005-06 NBA season and to work toward joining the Lakers for the 2006-07 campaign. However, he recovered more quickly than expected and just six months after his surgery, he signed a new contract with the Lakers, forgoing an opportunity to play in Spain for more money.

Known for his sideline antics, Turiaf has been given what head coach Phil Jackson calls "a new lease on life." After his rookie season, he was named to the French squad for the 2006 World Championships.

On Wednesday, November 1, 2006, in the second game of the 2006-2007 season, Turiaf scored career highs in almost every category, including 23 points, against the Golden State Warriors.

[edit] See also

List of French NBA players

[edit] External links

Persondata
NAME	Turiaf, Ronny
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION	Professional basketball player
DATE OF BIRTH	January 13, 1983
PLACE OF BIRTH	Le Robert, Martinique
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH