Mfiondu Kabengele

Mfiondu Tshimanga Kabengele (born August 14, 1997) is a Congolese-Canadian professional basketball player for Venezia of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) and the EuroCup. He played college basketball for the Florida State Seminoles.

College career
Kabengele came to Florida State as an unheralded recruit and redshirted his freshman season. As a redshirt freshman, he played an important role on a team that reached the Elite Eight, averaging 7.2 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. In his sophomore year, Kabengele led the team in scoring with 13.2 points per game along with 5.9 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game despite not starting a single contest. He was named ACC Sixth Man of the Year. During the NCAA Tournament, Kabengele averaged 17.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks per game. On April 9, 2019, he declared for the NBA draft, thus forgoing his remaining two years of collegiate eligibility.

Los Angeles Clippers (2019–2021)
On June 20, 2019, Kabengele was selected by the Brooklyn Nets with the 27th pick of the 2019 NBA draft, and his draft right was later traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for a future first-round pick in the 2020 NBA draft and the draft rights to the 56th pick of the 2019 NBA draft, Jaylen Hands. On July 9, 2019, the Clippers announced that they had signed Kabengele. On October 24, 2019, Kabengele made his debut in NBA, coming off the bench in a 141–122 win over the Golden State Warriors with three points, a rebound and a block. On November 16, 2019, Kabengele got himself 10 points and two rebounds in a 150–101 blowout win against the Atlanta Hawks. Kabengele posted 25 points, 12 rebounds, three assists, three blocks and two steals on assignment for the G League's Agua Caliente Clippers in a 112-102 loss to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers on January 14, 2020. He recorded 38 points, 12 rebounds, and a block on January 19 in a G League win over the Stockton Kings. He worked to establish a three-point shot from the professional distance, in the G League.

On March 22, 2021, Kabengele, along with a 2022 second-round pick belonging to the Atlanta Hawks, was traded to the Sacramento Kings for the Kings' 2022 second-round pick. Three days later, he was waived.

Cleveland Cavaliers (2021)
On April 10, 2021, Kabengele signed a 10-day contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers. On April 21, he signed a second 10-day contract. On May 1, he signed a multi-year contract. On May 9, Kabengele logged a career-high 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field and 1-of-2 from three, along with four rebounds and one assist across a career-high 23 minutes of play in a 124–97 loss to the Dallas Mavericks. On October 12, 2021, the Cleveland Cavaliers waived Kabengele.

Rio Grande Valley Vipers (2021–2022)
On October 17, 2021, Kabengele signed with the Houston Rockets, but was waived shortly thereafter. He subsequently joined the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA G League.

Boston Celtics (2022–2023)
On July 16, 2022, Kabengele signed a two-way contract with the Boston Celtics after an impressive showing during Summer League Play. On March 27, 2023, he was named the G League Player of the Week after averaging 27 points, 16.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists. On April 13, Kabengele was named to the All-NBA G League Second Team and the NBA G League All-Defensive Team.

AEK Athens (2023)
On August 13, 2023, Kabengele signed with AEK Athens of the Greek Basket League, his first European club. On November 25, 2023, Kabengele recorded a monstrous statsheet of 30 points, 16 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks in a 90-70 blowout win over rivals PAOK. On December 26, 2023, his contract with AEK was terminated. He averaged 14 points, 8 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game in domestic competition, as well as 10.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in the BCL.

Personal life
Kabengele's parents Tshilongo and Tshimanga Kabengele are originally from the Democratic Republic of the Congo but moved to Canada for educational reasons. His maternal uncle is Dikembe Mutombo, a Basketball Hall of Fame inductee who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 18 years. Kabengele was an international affairs major at Florida State University, and is fluent in French.