 No player all decade has finished his rookie Euroleague season with the competition's highest performance index rating, but halfway through the Top 16, big man D'or Fischer of Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv is giving it a good try. Fischer has come out of nowhere this season to rank first with an average index rating of 21.7 over 12 games. That figure is based on Fischer ranking among the Euroleague's best in four other categories: rebounds (7.75 rpg.) and blocks (1.83 bpg.), second in each, as well as two-point shooting accuracy (69.7%) and scoring (14.8 ppg.), where he's fifth and seventh, respectively. After pro stops in Poland, Germany and Belgium, Fischer had come to Tel Aviv with a reputation based on his defense. It didn't take him long, however, to adapt to Maccabi's style and round out his game with big offensive numbers, too. Now, with Maccabi facing its most important date of the year so far at home on Thursday against Real Madrid, the team's newest star wants to cap his breakthrough season with a victory that keeps the tradition of big-game successes alive in Tel Aviv. "Yes, it's an important game, make or break for us, but we have to be calm, relaxed and play our way," Fischer told Euroleague.net. "Everyone will have to step it up another notch for Thursday. It will be tough because Real Madrid is a great team with a great coach, and they will be just as hungry as we are."
Hello, D'Or. Everybody says you've been making your first Euroleague season look a little easy. Has the transition to this competition been as easy as your numbers seem to say?
"No, not at all. There's nothing easy about this competition. That's the thing about the Euroleague, that it's not easy. Every night you play against the top guys. Fortunately for me, my teammates see what I can do, they are not selfish at all, and they do a good job of finding me. Also the coach has confidence in what I can do, and that's helps a lot."
Is it true that you never planned a basketball career when you were growing up, since you didn't play high school basketball?
"When I was younger, it was always my dream. I was always dreaming about playing basketball. And I guess that dealing with people saying that I wouldn't make it has been my motivation."
Coming into this season, you were considered mainly a rebounder and shot-blocker. Now you are scoring more than at any time in your whole career. How do you explain that breakthrough?
"That goes to my teammates and the offense. I've been blessed to be able to be in this situation. When you come into a team with new guys, you hear about whether they are rebounders, passers, other categories. The guys here started to notice that I could shoot and coach told me to be a little more aggressive. He put it in my mind every day, and still does, because I don't have a killer mentality to go out and score. I love to pass, you know. I usually don't look for my shot, but my teammates tell me that when I am open, shoot. They don't get mad. They are all unselfish. All the credit goes to my teammates and coaches for this success I am having."
 During the season, Maccabi made a coaching change and brought in Pini Gershon, a legend. What has it been like to play under a legendary coach?
"It's funny because I'm new to the Euroleague and playing against the top guys every week. When they first said we were getting a new coach, I didn't know who he was. They said, 'Are are you serious?' And I was, because I didn't know him. I thought it was going to be tough for me to be able to adjust, because in the three pro teams I played before this, there had never been a coaching change. I thought it would be bad, but it shows how good a coach he is that it has not been that way at all. Pini was able to see my talents, and it's part of being a great coach to know what talents players have. And that helps the players a lot."
The power forward playing next to you, Lior Eliyahu, is having his best year ever, too. How have you two been able to jell so quickly and share such similar numbers?
"That's just because both of us are unselfish. Lior is a special player, a unique big man who can finish and is unselfish and rebounds well, too. It's just a complementary thing for both of us. We are two big guys who share the ball, and our point guards, Carlos Arroyo and Marcus Brown, give us a couple assists each every game, too. It's great and fun to play with these guys. It makes it a special year for me."
Maccabi's most important game of the season is Thursday when Real Madrid comes to town. How are the preparations going for that do-or-die-type game?
"There's a lot going on in practice, for sure. I tell you I was getting frustrated because guys were just fouling me up and down this week. But they were being rough with me because that's the type of basketball that Real Madrid plays - physical, tough basketball. Yes, it's an important game, make or break for us, but we have to be calm, relaxed and play our way."
As a newcomer to the Euroleague, do you need to study more than others about your individual opponents, especially now as the games become crucial?
"Well, with the coaches, that's why I love them so much. They really break it down for us, with five-page scouting reports on each player and watching all the video we need to. It's a big help to me, because they know I'm new, but not only to me, The whole team gets as prepared as we can for each opponent."
Are you aware of all the history that goes into a game like this one with Real Madrid?
"I know it's a rivalry for sure, an old one and a recent one. I think that Maccabi knocked out Real Madrid last year, and then when we went there a few weeks ago, they whupped us bad. That makes this a very important game, a must-win game. Let's hope we don't miss any shots and they score zero. I'm just kidding, of course, but it would be nice to win easy."
Knowing about Maccabi's history by now, do you sense any more pressure for a game like this one on Thursday?
"No. When you think like that you won't be as focused. At the end of the day, it's basketball, and you have to have fun playing it. You're going to lose some, win some. You have to go out and play your game. Everyone will have to step it up another notch for Thursday. It will be tough because Real Madrid is a great team with a great coach, and they will be just as hungry as we are."
The atmosphere at Nokia Arena is certain to be electric. How have the fans there impressed you this season?
"Maccabi fans are certainly special. They win a lot of games for us by being loud and crazy and supporting us 110 percent. Honestly, I just feel blessed to be in this situation."
Not even playing high school basketball when you were young, what do you think now when you walk out on the floor for a Euroleague game with the Maccabi supporters behind you?
"I never thought I'd be in this situation, but I am blessed and happy that the hard work paid off. I'm still not satisfied. I still have a lot of things I need to improve. This summer, I'll look myself in the mirror and ask where I want to go and what I want to be in a few years, when I'm 31 or 32."
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