The Incredible Story Of 2-Time Laker Champion Slava Medvedenko Defending His Homeland Of Ukraine

The war in Ukraine has begun. Explosions breaking the silence after dark in Kyiv and tonight it's believed the Russians are already within city limits. Right here? This way? You're looking straight into this camera. Okay. The people of Ukraine have felt that they have been left to themselves, to defend themselves. No one is coming to defend Ukraine. My name is Slava Medvedenko. I won two NBA championships with Los Angeles Lakers. On February 24, everything in my life has changed. For most Laker fans, the last memory they have of Slava Medvedenko is this, winning the second of back-to-back championships with LA. We won this championship for you and because for you. And we love our fans. So how did he go from the pinnacle of American sports to finding himself in a war zone? Last August, he reflected on that question via Zoom in Kyiv. That was the past. It's like compare those times and now it's a completely different story. Everything has changed. That was like a dream for me. When I just finished playing, after that I just returned to Ukraine and lived in Ukraine. I had my basketball academy in Kyiv and I had a lot of plans. So all my future was there. His return made sense. Born a couple hours outside Kyiv, he wanted to go back to what he knew, back home. So when his NBA career was finished after seven years and two championships, he settled down there, got married to his wife Elena, they had two kids, and life was peaceful. Until... We are beginning to hear a series of explosions. We took a moment to hear it earlier. I just wanted to play for you some of what they're hearing in Ukraine now, a few hours before the sun comes up. First attacks happened at five in the morning. I was sleeping, I heard some booms and I woke up and my phone started vibrating so hard. I opened the window and I saw a second explosion. It was also somewhere there. And then I called to my parents. We didn't woke up our kids. We had lack of information. And we decided to stay the next few days and think what we can do, what we will do. They took refuge in their apartment's underground parking lot, which functioned as a makeshift bomb shelter. Tried to keep up with the news, and eventually, the Russian troops closing in on the city had to make a tough decision for their family. When the Russian was so close to Kiev city, I sent my kids to my grandparents, to the safest place on the west side of my country. They left on the 8th of March, because on the 7th of March my son had birthday. So he even didn't have cake and he didn't have friends. But I said that after the war, of course, we will celebrate. But now it's not the time to celebrate. I miss them, that's for sure. But on those period of time, there was no time to think something different. I gave them all documents. Their birth certificates, their passports, everything that we had, I gave with them, because I didn't know where they will be next few months. Because it was most dangerous days in Kiev, really. When they were in a safe place, it was like relief. As for mom and dad, they decided to stay back in the only place they knew. But for many, the choice begged the question, for a family with the resources to leave, why stay? Listen, it's just a simple thing. Like I said, I just feeling I have to stay and I have to do something for my country. It's a feeling. It's all about feeling. I just feel that that's right, to stay. It's a feeling. It's all about feeling. I just feel that that's right, to stay. I felt that I should stay, because it was my city. I made so many things in this city, where if everybody will leave, who will protect our city that we were born in? Two weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine, former Laker Slava Medvedenko and his wife Olena had decided to stay in the country and fight. They had already sent their kids off to safety with their grandparents, and now were considering their next step. I just try to be valuable for my country, and I just defend my neighborhood. For those like Slava who wanted to be valuable, his country had an answer. Want to help? Grab a gun. We will defend our land. We will defend our sovereignty. The future of our Ukrainian people depends on every citizen of Ukraine. So, this is a warehouse. This is a warehouse of the post of the Secretary of Defense, I won't say where, on the left bank. I'm here with Slava Medvedenko. This is a secret, a secret warehouse. Yes, we won't say where. Slava Medvedenko wears an AK instead of a basketball uniform. Do you have an AK? Yes, I had to take it, you see. I had to take it, even though I don't like all these things, all this weaponry. But the time is such, they forced us to take the weapon. They call their job territorial defense. A high-stakes group of neighborhood watch, aiding the local police and army. Slava would primarily go out at night, and from the highest building in his neighborhood, keep an eye out for encroaching Russian troops. I saw a lot of things. I saw a flying jet. I saw the rockets just flying over my head. That was like a zombie apocalypse. And TCG, that was terrible. In those moments, I understand, I can die any minute because Russian bombs our city. It was scary when he was there. Yes, it was scary. I was waiting for him. I didn't sleep. I just knew that he should come back in three hours. So I was waiting, and then he came, and it was like, oh, it's one day plus. Tomorrow he will go again. Slava, you are just like a hero, Ukrainian hero, on the same line with Zelensky, Zelensky, Medvedenko, heroes of this war. Mykola Vasylkov is a well-known journalist in Ukraine. He befriended Slava, and began documenting not only his efforts, but also those of his wife, Olena. Here, when people go on duty, they come here, get their weapons, sign, and go. We have weapons in the second place, but here it's like, let's say, a call. The working environment. That's why we have it here. There is a lot of different information, apart from the military, there is also a lot of humanitarian information. I write letters in groups, if they bring something that is quickly damaged, we write that come and pick it up. There is a separate room for things, for boys, for the military. We have taken this room to help the elderly. A lot of elderly people come here, and they need to be given food. Command post. Through this point you see a lot of radios. There is communication with all our units that we have. I see. Block posts. Neighborhoods. Yes, neighborhoods and other points. We took on the function of the police, in fact, and that we do not distract, we do not withdraw the resource that the police and the military can use somewhere on the front and make our country free from the occupation. Good morning, Ukraine. I am in Kyiv. Everything seems to be safe here. Two months had passed since two-time NBA champion Slava Medvedenko went from full-time dad to gun-toting soldier. During that time, Russia had been pushed out of Ukraine's capital city. Meanwhile, his kids were safe in western Ukraine with their grandparents. They'd FaceTime their parents nightly, send back videos when they could. But with news spreading of Kyiv's newfound normalcy, they wanted to come home. When our army is pushed back, Russian army, my kids, they call me all day, they call me on the phone and ask me, Papa, we want to come back, we want to be with you, and all that stuff. Yes, as soon as I understand it's kind of safe in Kyiv, I bring them back. Hello! That's probably the most important time to understand happiness, that's when all your family just live with you. That's probably the most important thing. But for many kids in Ukraine, it wasn't as easy, and Slava would see the realities of war first-hand. When our army is free in Kyiv, we just go into the nearest city and provide them food, first aid, and all that stuff. And yes, we saw a lot of dead bodies just laid down at the road. That was pretty emotional. Yeah, that's the war. And that was just the beginning. There were visits with wounded soldiers, some of whom had lost limbs. Gyms that he helped build years prior in ruins. Out of that reality, an idea was born. The Fly High Foundation. I said, Slava, what do you think about to make a foundation now to help children? Because you see what's going on with our kids. The problem was that half of the country were refugees. And for all these families, they can't move freely. They're all the time thinking, what about our kids? We have two goals. The first goal is that we're helping kids get mentally better. We're doing camps for them. Psychologists work with them and sports help rehabilitate them. There are absolutely tragic moments when they lost families, home, relatives, or even, I don't know, hold your arm and still smiling. We see some replies from their parents that they didn't see their kids smiling for the last half a year. It was the only one day when they came back from camp and they saw that they were so happy. And it's the best what we can hear about it. The second agenda is to rebuild and fix sport gyms. Because Russians already destroyed hundreds and more schools just destroyed, and more than a thousand damaged. The idea was noble, but costly. So to help the future, Slava looked to the past and what he called his dreams, to the last thing connecting him to his life in the United States and the NBA. It's a simple thing. It's no reason to keep them in this dangerous time. I had to do something. I had to show people and show them for Ukrainian nation more important is win in this war. And everybody have to do something valuable to help our nation. That's his dreams. Nobody will say that it's not his dreams. They will be forever his dreams. It's the destination of these dreams to help some more people than one person to earn it. And if these dreams will save even one life, it will be the best. How special is it to be here tonight? I don't know. For me, it's kind of sensitive. All this stuff. Everything is special. 20 years after Slava earned his second ring with the Lakers, he returned to the arena that shaped much of his life. A lot had changed in that time. But for just one moment, it was easy to forget all that had gone wrong in a place where so much had gone right. When you hear about a Laker championship ring coming up for auction, the first thing that crosses your mind is that it's stolen property. Because who would ever sell their Laker championship rings? But when we found out that it was for to raise money for funds for his country, it really was it touched all of us. It's almost 12 months after the war started, but I feel like it's four years a lot of things happened. More than 6,000 miles away from the war, Jeannie Buss has caught wind of what Slava Medvedenko is going through. From there, she gets to work, using her connections here to help with the auction. Eventually, the rings sell for more than $250,000, and Jeannie continues her support by sending Lakers gear to the kids of Ukraine. The Lakers organization, they respond so quick. They just ask me, how can I help? And we just start working on that. And that's a great feeling. And tonight, Slava has been invited back to the arena where he won two championships to see Jeannie for the first time in years. Thank you for the invitation. It's good to see you. How are you doing? I'm doing good. How are you doing? Kind of normal. Thank you so much. We have a war in our country, but we kind of adapted for that. You're very inspiring. Watching what has happened in his country and the fact that he decided to stay and defend his homeland was so inspiring to all of us. Sasha, Sasha, Sasha. How are you, man? You okay? He's really a special person, and when he was a Laker, that was the kind of loyalty that he brought to the team. It's nice what you did with the rings. Yeah, yeah. We sent a lot of kids to the camp to rehabilitate them. Our goal is to rehabilitate 500 kids. Good to see you. After February 21st, everything has changed, and I understand the family, your country, it's the most important thing. One of that night, I just decided if something happen with me, I have to keep these rings. The idea that he would make a sacrifice such as selling such central mental items like championship rings, we had to do something too. I've always said that sports is unique in its ability to impact the world for good. Slava, you put those values into action. You demonstrated not only your commitment to your country, but also your devotion to those in need. On behalf of the Lakers, it is my great honor to present to you, Slava, with these replacement rings. The best thing for us to do was to replace what he gave away, and they won't have the same meaning, they'll probably have even more meaning than winning an NBA championship. For my country, it's a tough time, and I want to say thank you everybody who support Ukraine, and I'm happy to be here, and I'm happy to be part of Lakers family. It's not just a professional club, it also feels like a Lakers family. You feel that attachment for that greatness of that club. When you are part of the Lakers family, you become part of the fabric of this storied franchise, and that part will never change. You become part of the foundation, part of the community, and Slava will be a Laker forever.