The Israel National Basketball Team is preparing in earnest for the upcoming World Cup qualifying games against Germany and Croatia, as coach Ariel Beit Halachmi will be without many of his regulars due to injuries.
The blue-and-white will head to Latvia to play Germany in what is a “home” matchup due to the security situation on Friday, while it will then head to Osijek for a road game on Monday against Croatia for what will be the final two games of Group E action.
Israel has already advanced to the next stage of qualifying, which will take place at the end of August. Its record will carry over to the second round, and heading into these last two clashes, Beit Halachmi’s squad sits at 2-2.
Israel National Basketball Team captain, coach describes upcoming challenges
Ahead of the team’s departure to Riga, both the head coach and captain, Tomer Ginat, spoke about the challenge that lies in front of them.
“We’ve worked really well over the past week,” Beit Halachmi began. “The news that Tomer Ginat was able to join us is very, very important. We’re doing everything we can, preparing as best as possible, and like I told you before, we need to give these players confidence, empower them, and I hope everything will go well.”
Over the past week, the team has tried to develop as much chemistry as possible, and while it is a young and inexperienced roster for the most part, the bench boss feels that he can get the most out of what he has.
“Overall, we have players here with a tremendous amount of motivation. This is an opportunity for them to come in and play a lot of minutes, and a lot of players here are getting a chance, and I trust them. We’ll be using some unconventional lineups, let’s call them that. On the one hand, that can actually work to our advantage.”
There are a number of players, including star center Roman Sorkin, who are injured, as well as a pair who were not released from the NBA teams, which made it challenging for Beit Halachmi to put together the best team that he would want.
“Roman is one of our most important players, but he’s also one of the most committed players we have,” noted the coach.
“His injury is something that absolutely requires rest, and we don’t want to jeopardize any player’s future. In his case, the injury is genuinely significant. As we’ve already said, this window is the result of a combination of circumstances – many injured players, and our NBA players who weren’t released. On top of that, you can’t ignore the fact that it’s been an extremely long season, especially with everything that’s happened during the war. I’m confident that whoever is able to come for the next window will be there.”
Ginat will be joining the team despite not being 100% healthy, but he felt it important to be a part of the squad after having missed the last two national team windows, where Israel fell to Germany and Croatia in the first but defeated Cyprus twice in the second.
“This is important to me,” Ginat started off. “I missed both the November and February windows because of my injury. So now there are two very important games. I’ll do everything I can to help the national team. Hopefully, we’ll play well, represent the country with pride, and win. My condition didn’t really improve during the last two Finals games. I went through various medical treatments to feel a little better, and I’m still dealing with it. I hope it’ll hold up through this upcoming week with the national team. We’ll take it day by day, see how I feel, see what I’m capable of doing. Of course, I’ll give everything I have.”
Ginat was nowhere near being at his best since coming back from his most recent injury during the Israeli league playoffs and while he is with the national team, many others are not. However, he made clear he is not going to judge anyone else or their situation.
“At the end of the day, we’ve been through a really long and difficult season. A lot of people are injured. Even if the injuries are relatively minor, many guys played through them. It’s been a very demanding season, with a lot of travel and a lot of games. Everyone who’s absent has their own reason for not being here. But ultimately, we have to focus on the players who are here. We’ve got guys who can have a great week and produce great results. That’s what we’re here to do.”
Ginat committed to national team’s success
Despite also not being at full strength, Ginat will do as much as he can to help the national team succeed.
“First of all, I think you saw during the playoffs that I wasn’t always able to do what I normally can. I’m trying. Again, I’m in pain. I’m not 100% healthy. I’m doing everything I can. Sometimes that means contributing in different ways than I’m used to, or than people are used to seeing from me. But I think my presence alone is important. Just being here matters. It was important to me to be here and I put in a lot of effort to make it happen. I hope I’ll also be able to contribute on the court as much as possible and help the national team.”
Ginat went through a process to see if he was in good enough shape to join the national team.
“I’d been in contact with Ariel and team manager Moti Daniel for a month or two before the season ended. It was clear that I wasn’t at 100%. We wanted to see how the playoffs progressed. Unfortunately, things didn’t improve as much as I’d hoped. I was hoping to feel a lot better during the playoffs. When the season ended, we met and talked. In the last few days of the season, during the final two games, I felt a little better. At the end of the day, it came down to a decision. From a medical standpoint, the right decision for me would have been to rest. But I can also rest after these games.
“The bottom line is, we’ll have to deal with what we have and go with the group that we have. I think it’s a group that’s good enough and I also think we’re a very close-knit and mentally tough team. We’ll come in and give everything we’ve got. That’s what Israel is and that’s how Israel has to play.”
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