Giorgi Shermadini ( ka, გიორგი შერმადინი; born 2 April 1989) is a Georgian professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player for Lenovo Tenerife of the Spanish

Liga ACB The Liga ACB, known as Liga Endesa for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional basketball division of the Spanish basketball league system. Administered by the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto (ACB), Liga ACB is contested by 18 teams, w ...

. He was born in the village of Natakhtari,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

on April 2, 1989. He is tall, and he plays at the center position.

Early career

In the 2004–05 season, Shermadini was the top scorer of the Georgian Youth League. His highest point total in one game was 89 points scored against the Sokhumi State University team, and he also had a 76 point, 16 rebound, and 6 assist game as well. He also had a 52 point game, a 54 point game, and another game, where he scored 60 points, grabbed 17 rebounds, and dished out 7 assists. He also participated in the Adidas Superstar Camp. His performance at the Adidas Superstar Camp earned him a selection to the World All-Star Team. In January 2005, he had his first practice with Maccabi Tbilisi’s Junior Team.

Professional career

Shermadini started playing basketball professionally when he was 16 years old, on the senior men's Georgian basketball team, Maccabi Tbilisi. In his first season in the Georgian Super League, during the 2005–06 season, he averaged 28.5 points per game, 14.7 rebounds per game, 2.8 assists per game, 3.0 blocks per game, and 1.2 steals per game, at the age of 17. Following the 2005–06 season, Shermadini was invited to the " Basketball Without Borders" (BWB) Europe camp, conducted at

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

, from June 30 to July 3. During the 2006–07 season, at 18 years old, he averaged the highest points per game ever in the Georgian Super League. He averaged 35.1 points per game, 16.4 rebounds per game, 4.7 assists per game, 3.4 blocks per game, and 2.6 steals per game. This included a game where he scored 60 points, grabbed 17 rebounds, and dished out 6 assists. During the 2007–08 season, at the age of 19, he averaged 33.5 points per game, 18.4 rebounds per game, 4.8 assists per game, 3.2 blocks per game, and 2.3 steals per game, in the Georgian Super League. In April 2007, Shermadini was invited to the "

Nike Hoop Summit The Nike Hoop Summit is an international basketball all-star game sponsored by Nike, Inc., Nike, held once a year, which features the USA Basketball Men's Junior Select Team against a World Select Team of international players. The players demons ...

" World Select Team. Unfortunately, he did not play with the World Select Team, due to an injury to his meniscus, which required surgery. He declared as an early-entry candidate for the

NBA draft The NBA draft is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) annual event, dating back to 1947 BAA draft, 1947, in which the teams in the league can Draft (sports), draft players who declare for the draft and that are Eligibility for the NBA dr ...

in 2008, but he failed to be selected in the

2008 NBA draft The 2008 NBA Draft was held on June 26, 2008, at the The Theater at Madison Square Garden, Washington Mutual Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. In this NBA draft, draft, National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took t ...

, as some concerns still remained among NBA scouts over his injury. Shermadini signed with the

EuroLeague The EuroLeague is a European men's professional basketball club competition. The league is widely recognised as the top-tier and the most prestigious men's basketball league in Europe. The league consists of 20 teams, of which 16 are given lon ...

giants, the Greek League club Panathinaikos, in 2008. He debuted on 29 November 2008, in the game against

Egaleo Aigaleo or Egaleo ( ) is a town and a suburban municipality in the western part of the Athens urban area, belonging to the West Athens regional administrative unit. It takes its name from Mount Aigaleo, whose name comes from the words αίγα/a ...

, playing for 6 minutes, and scoring 4 points. His EuroLeague debut came on 17 December 2008, playing for 10 minutes, and scoring 1 point against SLUC Nancy. His next game came in the Greek League, on 15 February 2009, against Trikala 2000. He scored 9 points (a personal high for him to that date while at Panathinaikos), with two dunks and 5/5 free throws. He surpassed his personal best again, although playing only for 12 minutes, by scoring 13 points in a home game against Union Kavala-Panorama, on 15 April 2009. In October 2010, he was sent by Panathinaikos, on a one-year

loan In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money. The document evidencing the deb ...

, to Union Olimpija of the

Adriatic League The ABA League, renamed the ABA League First Division in 2017, is the top-tier regional men's professional basketball league that originally featured clubs from former Yugoslavia (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, ...

. In October 2011, he was again loaned by Panathinaikos, this time to the Italian league club

Cantù Cantù (; Brianzöö: ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Como, located at the center of the Brianza zone in Lombardy. It is the second largest city in Brianza. History The name could stem from that of the Canturigi, a population of I ...

. In June 2012, he signed a two-year deal with the Israeli Super League club Maccabi Tel Aviv. In December 2012, he signed a deal with the Greek League club

Olympiacos Olympiacós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós (, Olympic Association of Fans of Piraeus) is a major multi-sport club based in Piraeus, Greece. Olympiacos is parent to a number of different competitive departments which participate in football, ...

. With Olympiacos, he won the 2012–13 season championship of the

. In the summer of 2013, he signed with CAI Zaragoza of the Spanish League. He left the team in February 2014, in order to come back to

. On August 9, 2015, he signed with MoraBanc Andorra. On July 9, 2019, Shermadini signed with the Spanish club Iberostar Tenerife. He averaged 18.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per game during the 2019-20 season. On May 27, 2020, he signed a three-year extension with the club. On May 26, 2021, Shermadini was named the

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...

of the 2020–21 ACB season after averaging 17.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and a PIR of 22.5.

National team career

Georgian junior national team

In June 2005, despite his brief playing experience, Shermadini was selected to the Under-16 Junior National Team of Georgia, and he played at the

Youth Olympic Games Youth Olympic Games is an international multi-sport event for athletes aged 15 to 18 years old. Organized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Games are held every four years in staggered summer and winter events consistent with ...

, in Moscow. Later in 2005, he played at the 2005 FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship, in

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

. Following his surgery and rehabilitation, for his meniscus injury that he suffered in 2007; he was invited to the Under-20 Junior National Team of Georgia. At 18 years old, he played at the

2007 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship The 2007 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship was the tenth edition of the FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship. The cities of Nova Gorica, in Slovenia, and Gorizia, in Italy, hosted the tournament. Serbia won their first title with that name

, in

Nova Gorica Nova Gorica () is a town in western Slovenia, on the border with Italy. It is the seat of the Municipality of Nova Gorica. Nova Gorica is a planned town, built according to the principles of modernist architecture after 1947, when the Treaty of pe ...

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

. Despite playing at much less than full strength, due to his recent surgery and rehabilitation, he was the top scorer on the Georgian Under-20 National Team, averaging 12.5 points per game, 7.4 rebounds per game, and 1.5 assists per game, in 23.8 minutes played per game. He was also the second-leading shot blocker in the Under-20 European Championship, averaging 2.1 blocked shots per game. At the 2008 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship, Shermadini shot 74% from the field, averaged 21.5 points per game, 10.5 rebounds per game, 1.2 assists per game, and 3.7 blocks per game.

Georgian senior national team

In August 2006, Shermadini was the youngest player ever selected to the senior men's Georgian national basketball team, when he made the men's senior national team at the age of just 17. He played alongside teammates, Zaza Pachulia (

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Easte ...

), Nikoloz Tskitishvili ( Teramo Basket), Shammond Williams (

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

Viktor Sanikidze Viktor Sanikidze (alternate spelling: Victor) (born 1 April 1986) is a Georgian politician, former professional basketball executive and former player. He played at both the small forward and power forward positions in his entire career. Saniki ...

( Tartu Ülikool/Rock), Manu Markoishvili ( Olimpija Ljubljana), and Vladimir Boisa (

Menorca Bàsquet Menorca Bàsquet, S.A.D. was a professional basketball team based in Menorca, Balearic Islands. On July 5, 2012 the club announced its dissolution after it was forced to renounce to its third promotion to Liga ACB The Liga ACB, known as Lig ...

). With the Georgia's senior national team, he played at the 2013 EuroBasket and the 2017 EuroBasket. In February 2023, Shermadini was on there roster that made Georgia qualify for its first-ever

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

Career statistics

EuroLeague

, - , style="text-align:left;background:#AFE6BA;", 2008–09† , style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2", Panathinaikos , 1 , , 0 , , 10.0 , , .000 , , .000 , , .500 , , 1.0 , , , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , -4.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2009–10 , 12 , , 0 , , 9.2 , , .667 , , .000 , , .750 , , 2.2 , , , , .5 , , .3 , , 4.5 , , 4.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2010–11 , style="text-align:left;", Olimpija , 16 , , 2 , , 15.6 , , .667 , , .000 , , .848 , , 3.4 , , .5 , , .3 , , 1.1 , , 7.4 , , 10.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2011–12 , style="text-align:left;",

, 16 , , 2 , , 21.6 , , .564 , , , , .841 , , 5.5 , , .8 , , .5 , , .6 , , 10.9 , , 15.3 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#AFE6BA;" rowspan="2", 2012–13† , style="text-align:left;", Maccabi , 9 , , 2 , , 9.7 , , .520 , , , , .630 , , 2.3 , , .1 , , , , .2 , , 4.8 , , 5.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

, 17 , , 6 , , 10.5 , , .568 , , , , .750 , , 2.9 , , .4 , , .4 , , .7 , , 4.4 , , 6.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2013–14 , style="text-align:left;",

, 9 , , 6 , , 14.0 , , .600 , , , , .778 , , 3.6 , , .4 , , , , , , 5.7 , , 7.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;",

Málaga Málaga (; ) is a Municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 591,637 in 2024, it is the second-most populo ...

, 23 , , 10 , , 14.4 , , .470 , , .000 , , .747 , , 3.5 , , .5 , , .3 , , .5 , , 6.5 , , 8.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, Career , 103 , , 28 , , 14.0 , , .557 , , .000 , , .778 , , 3.4 , , .4 , , .3 , , .6 , , 6.5 , , 8.3

Player profile

Shermadini is a legitimate seven-footer who understands well how to use his body to maintain good positioning. He possesses a nice jump hook shot and he has excellent fundamentals and offensive skills. He is a defensive presence with his long wingspan and his shot-blocking ability.

Awards and accomplishments

*Adidas Superstar Camp World All-Star Team: (2005) *3× '' Eurobasket.com'' website's Georgian League Player of the Year: (2006, 2007, 2008) *

World Select Team: (2007) *

Greek Cup The Greek Football Cup (), commonly known as the Greek Cup or Betsson Greek Cup for sponsorship reasons is a Greek football competition, run by the Hellenic Football Federation. The Greek Cup is the second-most important domestic men's footba ...

Winner: (2009) * Greek League Champion: (2009) *2×

Champion: (

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

) * Triple Crown Champion: (2009) * All-Liga ACB First Team: (

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

) * Spanish League MVP: (

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

) *

FIBA Intercontinental Cup The FIBA Intercontinental Cup, previously known to as the FIBA World Cup for Champion Clubs and the FIBA Club World Cup, is an annual international men's basketball competition organised by FIBA, the sport's global governing body. The competit ...

: (

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

)