Draymond Green is probably grinning ear to ear from 4670 miles away during the Paris Olympics Group B game between France and Brazil. By now, you’ve probably guessed why he is laughing. If not, the reason can easily be Rudy Gobert. The Dubs veteran was all over Rudy Gobert during the NBA playoffs, and that can continue thanks to Maozinha Pereira of Brazil.

The 2024 Paris Olympics will put a whole host of global talents in the spotlight, and there’s no better way to announce yourself to the world than scoring an alley-oop finish on an NBA superstar. The No. 45 of Brazil went viral after his dunk on Rudy Gobert during the aforementioned game. After a smooth give-and-go with one of his teammates, the former Grizzlies forward posterized the NBA Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY). France, playing in front of the home crowd, were favorites, but the moment silenced the crowd in Stade Pierre-Mauroy stadium in Lille. In case you haven’t seen the viral poster already, here it is:

So who exactly is Maozinha Pereira? Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 2000, he started his playing career with Pinheiros Basquete, a São Paulo-based club in the Brazilian pro league, Novo Basquete Brasil. After a season with them, he moved abroad to Macedonia. Pereira joined the Macedonian First League team KK Crn Drim in 2020. The 6’8″ forward’s impressive stint on the European basketball scene ended with 13.1 points per game and 8.1 rebounds. The following year, he came back to his roots and joined Cearense, continuing his growth. Maozinha averaged 13.5 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 1.1 assists. This encouraging form prompted him to enter the 2022 NBA Draft, but Maozinha went undrafted.

According to his Instagram profile, he is engaged to Manuela Hata Aulicino Pereira and also has two brothers. Maozinho is the eldest of the three and his brothers are also aspiring basketball players, following their father’s footsteps. Tragedy struck his family in 2022 as Maozinha lost his 3-year-old cousin, Flor de Lis. Further details were kept private as the hooper only posted a picture with the caption, “Today the world does not have a flower anymore. Since he was born fighting just to survive and it was the same way until the end, always smiling and no matter how bad he was, he always fought. You, even at 3 years old, showed me the meaning of believing and hope. I love you very much Flor de Lis. May the Lord guard your hearts @fani_oliveira27 and @thiagot2017 I’ll never forget you cousin.”

But the journey did not stop. The 177-pounder joined Corinthians for the 2022-23 season and recorded 11.2 PPG and 9.8 rebounds. This put him on the radar of the G-League, and he was soon snapped up by Capitanes de Ciudad de México.

Looking at Maozinha Pereira’s NBA career

In October 2023, Maozinha officially joined the aforementioned G-League side. His best performance came on January 12 against the Wisconsin Herd, the Bucks’ G-League side. Maozinha scored 19 points while cleaning the board 11 times and picked the pockets of his opponents 3 times. In 40 games with Capitanes, Pereira averaged 10.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and 1.2 blocks. He also was selected to participate in the G League All-Star Weekend dunk contest and finished third. His progress did not go unnoticed as he became the second Capitanes player to get a call-up to the NBA thanks to the Memphis Grizzlies.

He signed a 10-day contract in March 2024 and made his debut against the Golden State Warriors. Maozinha scored 2 points in the 5 minutes he was on the court in the 137-116 loss. In March, he signed another 10-day contract with the franchise but was ultimately let go by the end of the regular season. At the time of writing, Maozinha was a free agent, so his dunk on Gobert thrust him back into the eyes of the fans and the NBA front office.

To absorb more interesting stories, watch the Dual Threat Show hosted by BG12 where the prodigy puts Bulldogs star Silas Demary Jr under the pump with loaded NBA questions and more in this video below.