Kansas basketball coach Bill Self said Thursday that he exchanged text messages with former Jayhawk Svi Mykhailiuk Thursday morning and learned that Mykhailiuk’s parents were safe in their home country of Ukraine.
Mykhailiuk’s country has been under attack for the past day or so following a Russian invasion that has drawn attention in all corners of the world.
Self did not know any more about the status of Mykhailiuk’s parents, who live in Cherkasy, Ukraine, but he believed that Mykhailiuk was hoping to find a way to get them out of the country in the very near future.
Cherkasy, a city of about 250,000 people, sits roughly 120 miles southeast of the capitol city of Kiev, which was the site of many of the early Russian attacks.
Svi’s mom, Inna, spent most of his life as a high school biology teacher in Cherkasy, and his father, Iurri, worked as a college history professor. The two came to a handful of KU games during Svi’s Kansas career and, despite speaking very little English, showed a great deal of appreciation and admiration for the Kansas basketball experience.
Both played sports when Svi, an only child, was growing up. His mother was a basketball player and his father played soccer and volleyball. Their love of sports sparked the same interest in him and he eventually became a standout basketball player at a young age, joining the local professional team at 16 and playing with several Ukrainian national teams throughout his life.
Today, he’s in his fourth season in the NBA — and playing for his fourth team — and has started five of the 43 games he has appeared in with the Toronto Raptors.
Mykhailiuk, who left Kansas as one of the school’s all-time best 3-point shooters, is one of two Ukrainians currently playing in the NBA. Alex Len, who plays for Sacramento, is the other.
Len and Mykhailiuk issued a joint statement about the situation back home late Thursday afternoon.
“A great tragedy befell our dear homeland Ukraine,” the statement began. “We categorically condemn the war. Ukraine is a peaceful, sovereign state inhabited by people who want to decide their own destiny. We pray for our families, friends, relatives and all the people who are in the territory of Ukraine. We hope for an end to this terrible war as soon as possible. Dear fellow Ukrainians, hold on! Our strength is in unity. We are with you!”
Two NBA players with Ukraine roots — Sacramento’s Alex Len and Toronto’s Svi Mykhailiuk — issue a statement condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and offering support to their native country. https://t.co/AOD5H7O3Zg
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 24, 2022
*Among dozens of games, hundreds of shots and all kinds of memorable moments, here’s a look back at one of my favorite stories I wrote about Svi during his time as a Jayhawk…*
