By Amy Samin<\/FONT> Only eight days have passed since David Blatt officially took up the reigns as head coach of Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv, and he has already signed three new players to the team for the coming season. How was contact established between you and Maccabi Tel Aviv?<\/B><\/FONT><\/P> \u201cThe folks from Maccabi got in touch with my agent, and apparently they liked what they saw of my games. What do you already know about the club?<\/B><\/FONT><\/P> \u201cMaccabi is a great club and I expect to be competing for the Euroleague championship and the local one. What do you see in store for yourself in your first season outside the U.S.?<\/B><\/FONT><\/P> \u201cI see it as an opportunity to be in a place I don\u2019t know. What kind of player can we expect you to be?<\/B><\/FONT><\/P> \u201cI\u2019m a player who likes to be in the paint, and who knows how to pass well. Foote\u2019s coach at Cornell University, Bill Courtney<\/B>, talked about Maccabi Tel Aviv\u2019s new acquisition: \u201cJeff is an amazing guy, one who likes to work extremely hard.
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The most recent signing was of Jeff Foote.
After all the details had been ironed out, Foote granted the website for the Sports Channel an interview in which he talked about his new team, his expectations for his first season playing in Europe, and what kind of player we can expect to see when he hits the hardwood in Nokia Arena.<\/FONT>
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Maccabi is a great team and I\u2019m very excited about becoming a part of it.<\/FONT>
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I can\u2019t wait for practices to start.
I\u2019m supposed to come to Israel in the coming weeks to undergo a physical, and then I\u2019ll return at the beginning of August.\u201d<\/FONT>
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A lot of the people I\u2019ve talked to about Israel had only good things to say about the country, especially Tel Aviv.
I think that David Blatt, who was a basketball player at an American college, will be able to help me, and to understand the things I\u2019m going through.\u201d<\/FONT>
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On defense, I can manage against all kinds of players, even guards.
I see myself as the kind of player who takes good care of the ball.
I like to work hard, because things have never come easily to me.
I\u2019m the kind of player who likes to put a lot into improving my abilities as a player.\u201d<\/FONT>
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He has an excellent understanding of the game, and is a wonderful player with his back to the basket; one who has a steady shot from the middle distance, and a passing ability that has improved greatly in the last few years.
From that standpoint, you could say he\u2019s a guard in the body of a center.
Although he\u2019s not forecasted to be part of the upcoming draft, I\u2019ve heard that a lot of N.B.A. teams are talking about him, so don\u2019t be surprised if he\u2019s picked up one of these days.\u201d<\/FONT>
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