Roster not yet complete: the player Hapoel Tel Aviv wants to add
In ten days, without the national team players, Itoudis' team will begin its training, but its roster has not yet been closed. The club is examining the market of players waived from the NBA, while one of the players whose name came up is expected to sign in Spain instead.
While Maccabi Tel Aviv announced on Sunday the completion of its roster ahead of the upcoming season, their city rivals have not yet done so, and not by chance. Although they have ten signed foreign players eligible for the upcoming season, Hapoel continues to examine the possibility of adding another frontcourt player.
The team relies on its pair of foreign centers — Dan Oturu and Tai Odiase, who both extended their contracts this summer, and also received a boost with Zach LeDay, who is capable of playing in the frontcourt. Furthermore, the club continues to be in contact with Max Heidegger, who may also join.
"We need a very specific type of player in terms of his place in his career," they said at the club today. "On one hand, a player who can contribute; on the other hand, it is not a leading player because we have our base with Oturu and LeDay. The player who will come is arriving to back up the frontcourt positions and give us more variety."
At Hapoel, they are following those waived from the NBA market, and at the same time, developments in the European market. Someone who was recently offered to the club was Joel Bolomboy, who, according to reports in Europe, may eventually end up outside the EuroLeague — in Malaga. Also, Hapoel examined the possibility of adding Maxi Kleber, a German national team player who played in the NBA in recent years.
The "Reds" will begin preparations for the season on August 20 in Bulgaria, arriving in Israel only about a month later for the Super Cup, which will be held on September 17. Hapoel is expected to announce its pre-season schedule soon. Those who will be absent for a large part of the preparation are the Israel national team players, who will begin training at the beginning of next week — Tomer Ginat, Guy Paltin, Cadyen Carrington, Tamir Blatt, and Itay Segev.
