Gabriel Valdez — Rio Grande Valley Sports Hall of Fame

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Rio Grande Valley Sports Hall of Fame

Gabriel Valdez

**Inducted: 2022**
**Hometown: Weslaco, Texas**
**High School: Weslaco High School**
**College: University of Texas Pan American**
**Best known for: Basketball**

Gabriel Valdez achieved amazing heights as both a player and coach on the hardwood. He was an All-State player for the Weslaco Panthers and later played at the NCAA Division I level with The University of Texas-Pan American Broncs.
After an outstanding playing career, Valdez became a head coach, achieving success coaching both girls and boys teams. In fact, he has won more than 800 games as a head coach in Weslaco ISD.
Valdez scored more than 20 points per game in three seasons as a Panther. As a senior in 1987-88, he captained a squad that went 31-2 – the best record in program history. He netted 28.5 points per game that year, was an All-State member, and earned a scholarship to what was then Pan American University.
At UT Pan American, he switched to shooting guard and became a bona fide outside scoring threat who could set up teammates in the low post. He was a three-year starter for the Broncs, setting records in free-throw percentage and consecutive free-throws made before he became a member of the All-Conference team his senior year in the Sun Belt Conference. He won the prestigious Lou Hassell Award as his school’s most outstanding male athlete in 1991.
His love of hoops took him into coaching. He guided the Weslaco Lady Panthers from 1994-2002, including an incredible 31-2 run in 1995-96. Next, he coached the Weslaco East Wildcats boys’ team for four seasons before taking the helm of the boys’ team at his alma mater, Weslaco High, in 2006. As of 2022, he had coached the Panthers to four 30-win seasons.

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