Hapoel Tel Aviv visits the Canary Islands for a date with Gran Canaria on Wednesday (22:00 Israel time) in EuroCup play as they look to come off the FIBA International break on the right foot, however, facing the ACB powerhouse is never a simple task. Danny Franco’s squad will look to win their second game in a row but Jaka Lakovic’s team is loaded with top talent from across the continent.

One of those players is veteran guard AJ Slaughter who is in the midst of his third season with the club and as usual has been has been lighting up the scoreboard with his superb basketball acumen, sweet shooting and hard nosed play. The Polish-American guard has been scoring at a 17.8 points per game clip while going an incredible 16/31 from beyond the arc as he is a constant threat to any defense.

Over the summer Slaughter helped the Poland National Team advance all the way to the semifinals while knocking off the likes of Slovenia in an unforgettable quarterfinal clash as well as Israel in the group stage. Over the course of the tournament, Slaughter averaged 13.2 points and 3.8 assists and scored his competition high against Israel with 24 points going 6/11 from downtown.

Just ahead of Hapoel’s matchup with Gran Canaria, The Sports Rabbi spoke with Slaughter about a myriad of topics from the Eurobasket, his career, college and the secret to Gran Canaria’s success so far this season.

“We just got together well with a new coach and new players and jelled. We are playing well as a team while the chemistry is good and we make it hard on the opponents to score. Plus we have a lot to offer offensively.”

This is your 3rd season with the club what makes this a place so comfortable for you?
“The organization from the first year welcomed me in after a serious health issue and they took a chance on me. I am comfortable on the court and have been able to record some big wins this season.”

You have a new coach in Jaka Lakovic who was one Europe’s top guards. What does he bring to the table?
“He brings a very strong mentality and he has played at a very high level for great Euroleague clubs like Barcelona and Panathinaikos. He knows what it takes to win and it starts with him. We have been playing well.”

How big was it for you to play in the NCAA Tournament with Western Kentucky?
“It was huge. You always dream as a kid in America to play in March at the NCAA Tournament and it was really big. Fortunately to got to go twice and we lost to UCLA with Kevin Love and Russell Westbrook the first time and the second time was buzzer beater against Gonzaga that saw us fall. It’s always something that I will cherish.”

Your teammate Courtney Lee had a solid NBA career, was this a goal of yours?
“You dream of the NCAA Tourney and you dream of the NBA. I had some opportunities and workouts in the NBA and I played in the Summer League. For my first 4-5 years that was the goal while continuing to get better and to get to the NBA. But it never happened so I focused on my building my European career.”

You only spent one season in the Euroleague, why weren’t you able to play in the Euroleague more seasons?
“I don’t know. It was that one season with Panathinaikos that I did play and I had some options to go back to Euroleague but I decided to take a lucrative offer in the EuroCup plus I was coming off my health issue. I had signed a Red Star but didn’t pass the physicals.”

After you beat Israel in the Eurobasket, you went on a roll all the way to the semifinals with a 90-87 win against Luka Doncic and Slovenia along the way. Now that you look back on that accomplishment how do you feel?
“That was huge. I was watching the highlights just the other day from the game against Slovenia and I was stunned and amazed that we won the game. We had gone up by 20 and then they took the lead and everyone thought we were done but we came back and won. We had so many big games and no one gave us a shot to win it. It is something else.”

What was the reason for your success?
“We all bought in and we knew that we were the underdogs and we had nothing to lose. So we lay it all out on the floor to give us a chance and we played with no pressure.”

What is Coach Igor Milicic’s potential?
“He has good qualities and he will land on his feet and get a job at a high level team. He proved that he knows his stuff and he’s an intelligent coach and hard worker.”

How is it to have Alek Balcerowski who played with you on the Poland National team with you at Gran Canaria on your club team?
“Just being a mentor to him has been great. He has a huge potential and he is getting better. He listens and wants to learn and improve every day and it’s great that we can both play at the same club and national team and take those experiences and grow from them here at Gran Canaria.”

How much longer do you see yourself playing basketball?
“I have got another good 3-4 good years in me and then we will see.”

What are your post-basketball plans?
“I think about it a lot, possibly coaching at some level and I have spoken to some NBA scouts as far as potentially being an international or college scout. I have some options.”

Hapoel coach Danny Franco spoke about how your team is very different in its composition like a typical Israeli team which has many Americans, thoughts?
“I love it and we have 7-8 players who play for different countries. We were so depleted during the recent FIBA window and it shows the quality of the players and team. Having that mix of players and styles gives us different aspects and options when we have to stop one player or another. It speaks to our strength as a team.”

As for the game with Hapoel, how will you contain the likes of J’Covan Brown, Xavier Munford and Jordan McRae?
“It’s going to be tough and they are an aggressive group. They can make shots and create for their teammates along with making plays, so we will have to be very focused.”