Vladimir Radmanović

Vladimir Radmanović (Serbian Cyrillic: Владимир Радмановић; born November 19, 1980) is a retired Serbian professional basketball player. In Serbia he played for Crvena zvezda and FMP, and in NBA he was a member of the Seattle SuperSonics, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, Charlotte Bobcats, Golden State Warriors, Atlanta Hawks and Chicago Bulls.
Radmanović has represented the Yugoslavian national basketball team and the Serbia and Montenegro national basketball team. He earned gold medal at the 2002 FIBA World Championships with Yugoslavia. He also participated at the 2004 Summer Olympics with Serbia and Montenegro.

Pre-NBA

Born into the Serbian family of a JNA officer hailing from the Dalmatian coastal town of Zadar in Croatia, Radmanović was born in Trebinje, in the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the former Yugoslavia, where his father Stevan was stationed at the time. He grew up in various locales dictated by the requirements of his father's profession.

Radmanović played basketball for KK Crvena zvezda and KK FMP before entering into the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 2001.

NBA career

Seattle SuperSonics (2001–2006)

Radmanović was selected by the Seattle SuperSonics as the 12th pick of 2001 NBA draft. Although consistent throughout his first two seasons, Radmanović became a candidate for the NBA Most Improved Player Award in the 2003–04 season, when he averaged 12 points and 5.3 rebounds per game mostly as a sixth man. He established himself as a deadly three-point shooter, making around 40% of his attempts.

He was integral to the Sonics' success in the 2004–05 season as a sixth man. He averaged 11.8 points per game and 4.6 rebounds, helping the Sonics win their first-round playoff matchup against the Sacramento Kings. On January 26, 2005, he made a career-high 8 three-point field goals against the Los Angeles Lakers.

After the 2004–05 season, Radmanović turned down a six-year, $42 million contract offer to re-sign with the Sonics, and instead decided to sign a one-year deal, making him an unrestricted free agent after next season.

He was nicknamed "Broadway Joe" by SuperSonics announcer Kevin Calabro, after his resemblance to NFL quarterback Joe Namath.

Los Angeles Clippers (2006)

After voicing his frustration for not being a starter, on February 14, 2006, Radmanović was traded from the SuperSonics to the Los Angeles Clippers for power forward Chris Wilcox.

The change of venue greatly improved his performance. Radmanović averaged 10.7 ppg, a career-best averages of 5.7 rpg and 2.1 apg, while shooting 41.8% of his three-pointers.

Los Angeles Lakers (2006–2009)

On July 13, 2006, Radmanović signed with the Los Angeles Lakers. Although he was believed to be a lock to re-sign with the Los Angeles Clippers (he at first accepted their offer at an estimated $31M over five years), he changed his mind after being promised a starting job with the Los Angeles Lakers. Although the Lakers were offering the same amount of money as Clippers, Radmanović was persuaded to join the team by Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson, Magic Johnson and his good friend, Vlade Divac, who were all convinced his shooting and playing opportunities would greatly increase in the Lakers' triangle offense. Jackson has also called Vladimir a "space cadet" and "my favorite Martian" in reference to his being out of position and taking wild three point shots. He was also referred to as "Vlad Rad." He started all 21 games in the 2007–08 Playoffs for the Lakers, and was high scorer for one game and high rebounder for several games.

Snowboarding injury

On February 18, 2007, Radmanović told the Lakers that he had separated his shoulder, when he fell on a patch of ice in Park City, Utah the day before, during the weekend of the 2007 NBA All-Star Game and would be out approximately eight weeks.

But, on February 23, 2007, Radmanović revealed that he had actually hurt himself in a fall while snowboarding. Radmanović's Lakers contract banned him from taking part in activities that involve significant risk of injury, including skiing and snowboarding. An NBA league source said that voiding the contract would be extremely unlikely, with a suspension or fine more likely. This proved to be true, as he was fined $500,000 for lying about the injury.

Charlotte Bobcats (2009)

On February 7, 2009, Radmanović was traded to the Charlotte Bobcats in exchange for forward Adam Morrison and guard Shannon Brown. Bobcats general manager Rod Higgins said Radmanovic would likely play both small and power forward.

Golden State Warriors (2009–2011)

On November 16, 2009, Radmanović was traded to the Golden State Warriors along with Raja Bell in exchange for Stephen Jackson and Acie Law.

Atlanta Hawks (2011–2012)

On December 9, 2011, Radmanović was signed by the Atlanta Hawks. In the Hawks' first game of the season on December 26, 2011, Radmanovic scored 17 points with four steals and five assists in 27 minutes.

Chicago Bulls (2012–2013)

On July 19, 2012, Radmanović signed a one-year deal with the Chicago Bulls.

Retirement (2013)

In October 2013, Radmanović announced his retirement. After 12 seasons in the NBA as a stretch 4, he shot 37.8 percent from 3 and averaged 8.0 points.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs