Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv has been busy preparing for the game Sunday against the Cleveland Cavaliers, including holding an open practice in front of 500 enthusiastic young fans. The team also took part in the Cav’s annual Big Shots and Little Stars fundraiser to benefit Flashes of Hope and The Children’s Tumor Foundation.
By Amy Samin
In their first practice in Cleveland, Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv welcomed over 500 enthusiastic kids at Beachwood High School, located in a suburb of Cleveland populated by many Jewish families. Afterwards, Devin Smith, Doron Jamchy and Nikola Vuj?i? held a special practice with children with a variety of disabilities in the framework of the Euroleague’s community service project, One Team.
The next day found Maccabi holding their first practice on the Cav’s home court, Quicken Loans Arena. In the evening, Maccabi’s management took part in the Cavalier’s annual Big Shots and Little Stars gala fundraising event to benefit Flashes of Hope and The Children’s Tumor Foundation. All of the Cav’s players took part in the event, as did their coach, David Blatt, who also made a donation. Maccabi was invited as the guest of honor, and Shimon Mizrahi, Danny Federman, Tal Brody and Mickey Berkowitz were in attendance. In addition, Jeremy Pargo and Yogev Ohayon were asked to play a part in the fashion show portion of the event, escorting one of the children down the runway.
Maccabi’s head coach Guy Goodes spoke to the media about the upcoming game: “We had an intensive, fast-tempo practice in preparation for the game. We want to continue to improve, both individually and as a team. We need better chemistry, and that takes some time. All of the commotion surrounding the game gets in the way a little bit, but the guys are good at staying focused.”
When asked to comment on Blatt’s observation that Maccabi loves to win games like these, Goodes replied, “See, he’s already putting pressure on us! It’s going to be interesting. Cleveland is a high quality team; even though they’ve just started practicing they are probably the best team in the world right now. We’ll play hard and put up a good fight against Cleveland; we’re not simply coming in to enjoy the experience. The most important thing is that it be an enjoyable evening and that no one – God forbid! – gets hurt on either team.”
