A sole goal in mind

Tue, 10 Apr 2007 13:12:58 GMT

I'd like to begin my second blog by congratulating the two teams that have already qualified for the Final Four – Tau Ceramica and Panathinaikos. We played both these teams during the season and I can say that both teams are worthy of their spot in the Final Four. Now our goal here is to join them. The Passover holiday is over and with it so is the difficulty of not eating unleavened bread for a week. The week-long holiday was not easy for me diet-wise, but we made it through that, too. I wrote my first blog before our first game in Moscow – and a lot has happened since then. The first was a pretty humiliating defeat at the hands of CSKA in that first game and the second was one of the biggest wins for Maccabi in recent years. We started the first game poorly and from that point we chased after CSKA, which was pretty frustrating. CSKA was everyone's favorite going in and then the game stared with Andersen's three-point shooting in the first quarter, was followed by Papaloukas's brilliant game-management and ended with Van den Spiegel's dunk show.

Looking back, that defeat was a good thing. We felt disgraced and therefore I think we came out as hungry for the second game as we did – like a team of tigers supported by a den of lions. Together we took down CSKA in the way that we did – a 22-point lead against a great team like CSKA in the third quarter. I wonder if without the humiliating loss in the first game, our performance in the second would have been possible. We couldn't have done it without the support of our fans. The Israeli crowd is a big part of why, in my opinion, Maccabi Tel Aviv will always be a major force and a great team in Europe. When we looked the way we did in Moscow, it hurt me as an Israeli player on this team that people in Europe would see Maccabi play like that.

I naturally hope that the third game will go the way we want and we'll win. My teammates and I will give everything that we have for our sole goal: Winning and earning a spot in the Final Four in Athens. There is so much meaning in this game. So much history behind our rivalry. So many fans involved in each game. And it's all for one goal. Again. A win and a spot in the Final Four. We, the Maccabi players, will try to come out with the same energy we had in the first game in front of our fans who gave us a tremendous push in Tel Aviv. We know that it's impossible to duplicate the performance from last week in Russia. We know that it will be much harder to win without without a sea of yellow in the stands. We know that trying to take down CSKA on its turf, where it hasn't lost a single game all season in the Euroleague, won't be easy. But as they say, there's always a first for everything.

I'll finish with wishes of health for all the players and good luck to all.

A rookie still aiming for the Final Four

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 18:20:40 GMT

I want to start off by taking this opportunity to wish all my friends, family and, of course, Maccabi fans happy holidays for this Passover, the Jewish festival of freedom. It's a little tough for me that on a night when the whole family gets together to celebrate and eat the festive meal, I won't be there. But if I have to celebrate from overseas, at least it's for a good cause: Basketball.

Like always, things are fun and interesting around here. That's the life of a pro basketball player. It started as an afternoon activity and turned into a full-time career. On Tuesday, we begin our Quarterfinal Playoffs series against CSKA Moscow, which as everyone knows is one of the best teams in Europe. CSKA's results this season prove that it is a dominant and well-organized team, with a wonderful coach and great players. Some say that Maccabi comes to this series as an underdog, but for me that's a hard word to say. Hey, we're Maccabi Tel Aviv. And that says a lot not only in Israel, but also in Europe. Okay, CSKA may have the homecourt advantage and that may be very meaningful – because they have not lost at home this season in the Euroleague – but I know that we are a much better and higher-quality team than we've shown so far. We have great players, a fine coaching staff and a team manager with the biggest heart, Moni Fanan, who helps us with everything, whether it be in our professional or private lives. I really hope that everything comes together for us at such a crucial time in the season and that we can upgrade our ability before facing CSKA.

I played for three years for an Israeli club called Hapoel Galil Elyon – a distance of two-and-a-half hours from my parents home. And trust me, in Israel, that's a lot. I left home at age 18 for basketball. This past week, we lost two away games in the Israeli League – to my former team, Galil Elyon, and to Hapoel Jerusalem, which reached the quarterfinals of the ULEB Cup. We lost both of these games by 1 point. To lose two games in one week by a point, even if they are considered tough games, is very frustrating. But I must admit that I was very excited to return to Galil Elyon and to play against the team that I began my career with and played for until I joined Maccabi.

To play for Maccabi Tel Aviv is the dream of every Israeli basketball player. In Israel, we call Maccabi "Israel's team," because the whole country actively follows every game and supports the tem like crazy, especially in the Euroleague. At our Euroleague home games, at Nokia Arena, 11,000 fans always pack the stands and it feels like if there were 20,000 seats, they'd all be full, too. For a player, it's unreal fun to get a chance to play in front of such a big and happy crowd. I moved back into my parents home this year – don't forget that I'm only 21. The support of my close family – my mom, dad and two brothers – helps me a lot. This is my first season playing in the Euroleague and at first I didn't know what to expect. I always used to watch games from the best league in Europe on the television, and now I'm a part of it. My test by fire went real well. We're among the best eight teams in the Euroleague and we hope to continue until the Final Four in Athens, in spite of the difficult series coming up against CSKA. I found my place on the team easily and almost naturally. I've gotten a lot of support and help from Maccabi players. I especially want to single out the legendary Nikola Vujcic, who has guided me and taught me so much along the way. He's a true professional, an amazing player and a great friend.

Until next time, happy holidays to everyone and...

Main Blogs

A sole goal in mind

A rookie still aiming for the Final Four