Given the question: Melvin Ray Sanders (born January 3 1981) is an American professional basketball player who last played for CB Valladolid in the Spanish League. He previously played for the NBA's San Antonio Spurs. Given a list of categories: company, educational institution, artist, athlete, office holder, mean of transportation, building, natural place, village, animal, plant, album, film or written work, what category does the paragraph belong to?
The answer is:
Athlete