As topsy-turvy as Maccabi Tel Aviv’s season has been, somehow the Yellow & Blue remain firmly entrenched in the playoff battle with or without the Russian teams. After downing Baskonia 94-93 and their 2x former coach in Neven Spahija in thoroughly entertaining end to end battle, Avi Even’s squad have kept their hopes alive to play in the postseason since 2015 when the Maccabi bench boss was an assistant under Guy Goodes.

Did Maccabi play their best basketball? No. Do they have to do some work on their defense especially along the perimeter? Definitely. Are they still in it to win it? Most certainly and at this point in the season as the campaign heads into the stretch run that is all the club can really ask for.

Baskonia came out firing on all cylinders in the first frame hitting six 3-pointers in what looked like a repeat of the 109-77 shellacking at the hands of Anadolu EFES in Turkey, but Even’s troops got the defense into gear and made the necessary adjustments to hold the visitors to an atrocious 5/18 the rest of the way

“There were too many issues with our focus and we worked on that during the game to drop their percentages from the outside,” the bench boss commented.

As over 8,500 Yellow & Blue supporters filed into Yad Eliyahu for what was a makeup game that had been postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak earlier in the winter, Maccabi could have easily won or lost had it been one rebound or one missed dunk or one late technical call that could have gone either way.

But the ghosts of Tel Aviv (or inconsistent officiating that was quite favorable to the hosts) were in the house and went after the visitors as they always seem to when Maccabi needs it most as Spahija inferred after getting called for a key T that resulted in a James Nunnally free throw which was the difference in the game.

“I am experienced coach and it’s the first time in my career that I got a technical call with two minutes left.”

However, the most important factor that Maccabi can take out of the game is the rejuvenation of a number of players from Iftach Ziv to James Nunnally and John Dibartolomeo as the Yellow & Blue now have a number of more options to go to instead of just Scottie Wilbekin and Ante Zizic who were both phenomenal.

“It wasn’t just James but also Iftach and John,” Even explained. “It’s super important that there is more scoring from other players in order for the points to be more evenly split up across the board.”

Dibartolomeo hit a crucial triple down the stretch in what was a great moment for him in a performance that saw him score 8 points, add 4 assists, finish with a +16 in close to 26 minutes of action as his coach praised his contribution.

“John is a special player as to what he can give to the players. He made a huge contribution on a lot of levels today to help the team.”

The captain himself also reflected on what he I capable of doing to help the club, “I don’t feel pressure and each player has to play to their strengths and as to who they are. My role has been to come off the bench and change the game, pressure the ball or hit a shot. If I continue to play to my strengths we can win games.”

Ziv who chalked up 7 points in 15 minutes (but finished a -16 in contrast to Dibartolomeo) also looked much more comfortable on the court with Even on the sidelines.

“This is one of the reasons why I am here and I feel that I can develop and earn minutes. The first half of the season hurt me but little by little with COVID and other issues, but I’m coming back into my own.”

“I didn’t forget how to play basketball and I know I can contribute and I hope these things are behind me. It’s not easy at Maccabi and it takes time, but slowly but surely I’m getting into the swing of things.”

It’s also clear the players seem to be enjoying the change on the sidelines with Even in and Sfairopoulos out. Sometimes change is needed. A jolt to the system or a wakeup call.

“It’s been a great experience so far,” Dibartolomeo explained. “I love Ioannis but Avi came in and put in his own stamp on the team with his character and he’s doing a great job within he team, the X’s and O’s, the energy and enthusiasm. His overall positive vibe is always good to have in the lockerroom.”

Ziv also commented on the coaching change, “I can’t explain it but every time there is change there are new things that occur, a new atmosphere. We are going to bring positive play and a lot of energy and we are all fighting for one another.”

While Even had been the head of scouting for some time, he looks at this as a new challenge whether temporary or permanent, “Life takes some scouts to become coaches and I’ll see where it goes. Each win helps strengthen the team as we continue on our journey.”

Going forward the big questions are now two-fold. Can Maccabi continue to play and win games in order to find a way into the playoffs and the biggest wildcard of them all, how will the conflict between Russia and the Ukraine play out at the Euroleague level?

All three Russian Euroleague teams, CSKA Moscow, UNIC Kazan and Zenit St. Petersburg have effectively been suspended from continental play despite the VTB League continuing on. Many foreign players and coaches have departed their clubs to head back home due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the future is in serious doubt for these teams.

As it stands now with all 3 teams still in the competition, Maccabi is 12-13 in 12th place but only one game off of 8th place with 9 games to go. If the 3 teams are removed from the standings the games played against those teams are removed from everyone else’s record and the Yellow & Blue are all of a sudden holding a record of 11-10 and it 7th place. So not only does Even’s squad move up 3 places, they in reality take out 3 losses and only one win which pushes them up 5 spots in what could be a massive difference.

Despite this potential positive news for Maccabi, Even doesn’t want to focus on what may be, but on what currently is, “We aren’t looking at the situation but we are looking to see how much better we can be. Every game we come and give the maximum and if we can put together a streak of wins, then we can begin thinking about the playoffs.”

“The entire situation is not pleasant,” Ziv began. “We are battling for the playoffs regardless. It’s out of our hands but we will continue to fight with our without the Russian teams.”

Dibartolomeo was positive that Maccabi can still battle it out with the top Euroleague teams and find their way into the playoffs one way or another.

“I think we can play with the top teams and we’ve proven that. We have to focus on our consistency and our ups and downs. We were fighting beforehand for a playoff spot and these things are out of our control.”

“If someone doesn’t believe in that, then they are in the work place. We can win against anyone, we beat Barcelona and dropped games we shouldn’t have. But each an every game that we play, we can certainly win.”