Sandro Mamukelashvili

Sandro Mamukelashvili was born in New York in May of 1999. As a baby, his family moved to Tbilisi, Georgia and he lived there until he was 14. His grandmother, Ira Gabashvili, was one of the captains for the Soviet Union's women's national basketball team, but it was his older brother David who introduced Mamukelashvili to basketball at a young age. Mamukelashvili moved to Biella, Italy at age 14 where he attended high school. In Italy, he competed for the U17, U18, and U19 teams, leading them to place third in the national finals. In 2016, Mamukelashvili moved back to the United States to play for high-school-basketball-powerhouse Montverde Academy in Florida with future NBA star RJ Barrett. There Mamukelashvili was mentored by longtime-idol Zaza Pachulia, and he helped lead Monteverde Academy to the DICK'S Sporting Goods High School Nationals Final. Mamukelashvili continued his basketball career at Seton Hall. As a senior, he averaged 17.5 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.1 steals, and was awarded the Big East co-player of the Year and the Haggerty Award (best player in the New York metropolitan area). Mamukelashvili was drafted with the 54th overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft by the Indiana Pacers, but was quickly traded to the Milwaukee Bucks.