Slava Medvedenko
Stanislav "Slava" Medvedenko (Ukrainian: Станіслав "Слава" Медведенко; born April 4, 1979) is a Ukrainian former professional basketball player, who played with the Atlanta Hawks and the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association. His position was power forward. After his basketball career ended Medvedenko embarked on a political career in Ukraine.
Slava Medvedenko | |
|---|---|
 Slava Medvedenko being interviewed as a coach after a match in which the Ukrainian team U16 played in 2015 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 4, 1979 Karapyshi, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union |
| Nationality | Ukrainian |
| Political party | Voice |
| Residence | Kyiv |
| Basketball career | |
| Personal information | |
| Listed height | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) |
| Listed weight | 253 lb (115 kg) |
| Career information | |
| NBA draft | 1998: undrafted |
| Playing career | 1997–2007 |
| Position | Power forward |
| Number | 14, 3 |
| Career history | |
| 1997–1998 | Budivelnik Kyiv |
| 1998–1999 | Alita Alytus |
| 1999–2000 | Kyiv |
| 2000–2006 | Los Angeles Lakers |
| 2006–2007 | Atlanta Hawks |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 1,390 (5.3 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 744 (2.8 rpg) |
| Assists | 136 (0.5 apg) |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
NBA career
Medvedenko, who joined the Los Angeles Lakers in 2000, is known for his shoot-first mentality. His shooting technique and skill have never been in doubt, but his work ethic and defense were far behind his offensive skills in his early career.
The 2003–04 season was his breakout year, as Karl Malone injured his knee and Medvedenko started the majority of games. As such, his scoring and rebounding averages doubled and he was no longer seen as a liability in the fans' eyes. Unfortunately, an injury kept him out of the 2004 pre-season and he dropped down the depth chart, unable to find his way back into the lineup under Rudy Tomjanovich. With Phil Jackson's return to the Lakers, there was hope that Medvedenko would play a greater role due to his experience with the triangle offense. However, due to a herniated disc in his lower back that required surgery, he missed almost the entire 2006 season.[1] He was waived at the beginning of March 2006, to clear roster space to enable the Lakers to sign guard Jim Jackson.[2]
Medvedenko was signed by the Atlanta Hawks on December 28, 2006 for about $600,000, for the remainder of the season.[3][4]
NBA career statistics
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| † | Won an NBA championship |
Regular season
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000–01† | L.A. Lakers | 7 | 0 | 5.6 | .480 | 1.000 | .583 | 1.3 | .3 | .1 | .1 | 4.6 |
| 2001–02† | L.A. Lakers | 71 | 6 | 10.3 | .477 | .000 | .661 | 2.2 | .6 | .4 | .2 | 4.7 |
| 2002–03 | L.A. Lakers | 58 | 10 | 10.7 | .434 | .000 | .721 | 2.4 | .3 | .2 | .1 | 4.4 |
| 2003–04 | L.A. Lakers | 68 | 38 | 21.2 | .441 | .000 | .767 | 5.0 | .8 | .6 | .3 | 8.3 |
| 2004–05 | L.A. Lakers | 43 | 4 | 9.8 | .455 | .000 | .821 | 1.8 | .3 | .2 | .0 | 3.8 |
| 2005–06 | L.A. Lakers | 2 | 0 | 3.0 | .500 | .000 | .000 | .0 | .5 | .0 | .0 | 1.0 |
| 2006–07 | Atlanta | 14 | 0 | 5.8 | .414 | .500 | .850 | 1.0 | .1 | .0 | .1 | 3.0 |
| Career | 263 | 58 | 12.7 | .450 | .154 | .740 | 2.8 | .5 | .3 | .2 | 5.3 | |
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002† | L.A. Lakers | 7 | 0 | 3.0 | .600 | .000 | .000 | .6 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .9 |
| 2003 | L.A. Lakers | 9 | 0 | 8.1 | .556 | .000 | .667 | 2.0 | .1 | .1 | .1 | 3.8 |
| 2004 | L.A. Lakers | 21 | 1 | 11.3 | .440 | .000 | .810 | 2.5 | .5 | .2 | .2 | 4.0 |
| Career | 37 | 1 | 8.9 | .477 | .000 | .778 | 2.0 | .3 | .1 | .1 | 3.3 | |
Political career
Medvedenko was a candidate (number 11 on the election list) for the Kyiv City Council of the party Voice in the 2020 Kyiv local election set for 25 October 2020.[5][6] But the party only managed to win 9 seats.[7]
Military career
In 2022, he auctioned off both his NBA championship rings and memorabilia in order to raise money for the Ukrainian military.[8] He and his wife both served in the military during Russian war against Ukraine. He was gifted two replacement championship rings in 2023 by Jeanie Buss. The ceremony was also attended by Paul Gasol and Sasha Vujacic.[9]
References
- Medvedenko has back surgery, likely out for season
- Lakers sign versatile Jackson, waive Medvedenko
- Hawks sign former Lakers forward Medvedenko
- Ex-Laker Medvedenko signs with Hawks
- (in Ukrainian) List of "Voices" to the Kyiv City Council: candidate for mayor - Prytula, candidates for deputies - former "self-help" and "demalyans", Civil movement "Chesno" (21 September 2020)
- Rada appoints next elections to local self-govt bodies for Oct 25, Interfax-Ukraine (15 July 2020)
- (in Ukrainian) Results of the 2020 elections of the Kyiv City Council, Central Election Commission of Ukraine
- "Ex-Laker Slava Medvedenko puts NBA championship rings up for auction to help his native Ukraine". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved August 18, 2022.
- "Slava Medvedenko gets replacement championship rings from the Lakers". basketnews.com. Retrieved August 20, 2023.