LAS VEGAS — Sandro Mamukelashvili gave the Lakers’ bench a reminder of the offense they added when he ripped down the baseline and finished a one-hand dunk Tuesday night. Ten rows behind the court, Flavor Flav rose from his seat and flexed, celebrating like the slam belonged to him.
The Public Enemy performer has become one of Mamukelashvili’s most committed supporters, a relationship that began with a shared dinner table in Las Vegas in 2022. The rapper said he was so caught up in the dunk that he failed to get the play on his phone — and joked that he hit himself for missing it.
Quick facts
- Mamukelashvili has posted 13 points per preseason game across four Lakers appearances.
- He is shooting 57.1 percent from the floor and 58.8 percent from 3-point range in those games.
- The Lakers signed the forward to a four-year contract worth $52 million this summer.
- On March 19, 2025, Mamukelashvili scored 34 points in 19 minutes for Toronto, an NBA record for a player logging fewer than 20 minutes.
- Coach JJ Redick has indicated the Lakers plan to find inventive offensive uses for Mamukelashvili.
Mamukelashvili said Flavor Flav still owns one of his Summer League jerseys. They have stayed in touch through texts and lengthy FaceTime calls, sometimes connecting multiple times in a week.
Their bond was visible during Mamukelashvili’s 34-point burst for the Raptors last March. Flavor Flav joined the postgame scene that night wearing a “Lucky Charm” shirt, and he recalled Mamukelashvili crediting his presence for the outburst. Mamukelashvili’s father made the same good-luck case, Flav said.
The Lakers are looking beyond energy plays from the 6-foot-11 forward. Mamukelashvili has flashed secondary creation in transition and on closeout attacks, traits that can keep the ball moving when defenses load up on Los Angeles’ primary scorers.
Redick said early in camp that the staff would “get creative” with Mamukelashvili and called the possibilities fun. The preseason numbers have backed up that approach, with the big man scoring efficiently from both the paint and beyond the arc.
Flavor Flav sees the Lakers stop as an opening for Mamukelashvili to show a broader game and more of his personality. He praised the Georgian forward for working his way through the margins of NBA rosters and said landing in Los Angeles could be the best break of his career.
Mamukelashvili said the friendship has carried extra weight because Flav knew him before the current contract and preseason production. The rapper was around when Mamukelashvili had been cut and when he was fighting simply to hold a 15th roster spot.
The forward said he repeatedly told his friend that he would find a path in the league. Tuesday’s dunk was another small marker on that route — even if Flav will need to be quicker with the camera the next time Mamukelashvili gets loose along the baseline.
