Ex-NBA Slava Medvedenko Selling 2 NBA Championship Rings To Raise Money For Ukraine
Ex-Laker Slava Medvedenko Selling 2 NBA Championship Rings Raising Money For Ukraine
Former Los Angeles Lakers F Slava Medvedenko is selling his two NBA championship rings from '01 and '02 ... and it's all to raise money for his home country, Ukraine, as the war continues to rage on in the country.
The rings, on the block at SCP Auctions through August 5, are expected to sell for at least $100K total, and 100% of the money from the sale will go to Slava's Fly High Foundation.
The foundation aims to support Ukrainian children by repairing sports in schools in areas that have been hit the hardest by the war, According to the Associated Press.
Medvedenko says he plans to use the money from the sale of the rings, which he earned playing alongside Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, to repair or rebuild fitness centers destroyed by missiles, bombs, and artillery fired by Vladimir Putin's military.
“We want to restore gyms because the Russian army bombed more than a hundred schools,” Medvedenko told The AP during a phone interview.
“Our country, they need a lot of money to fix the schools. Sports gyms are going to be last in the line to fix it. In Ukraine, we have winter, and kids need to play inside.”
Slava -- who spent 7 seasons in the NBA -- says he felt compelled to help after witnessing firsthand Russian rockets flying through the night sky as the former Laker watched from a Kyiv rooftop.
“In this moment, I just decided, ‘Why do I need these rings if they’re just sitting in my safe?’” Medvedenko said. “I just recognize I can die."
"After that, I just say I have to sell them to show people leadership, to help my Ukrainian people to live better, to help kids."
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Despite having no military background, the 43-year-old, 6'10" ex-hooper -- equipped with his binoculars and AK-47 -- has served in Ukraine's territorial defense during the war.
As Medvedenko continues to help Ukraine during the war with Russia, he's already plotting how he can use sports to restore some normalcy and return prosperity to his war-torn country.
“After the victory, we will definitely return to that question of quality changes in sport,” Slava said. “Ten years in the United States, I saw how it works. I hope I have [the] ideal model in my mind to change Ukrainian sport.”
