\u201cHand on heart, I\u2019ll say I really didn\u2019t believe I\u2019d be in the final squad. But I came in humbly, worked very hard, gave it everything, body and soul. I told myself, worst-case scenario, if I don\u2019t make it this year and I don\u2019t get to be part of this tournament, at least I\u2019ll get to the U.S. in better shape. I think that approach released something in me and it gave me a kind of freedom and confidence. That\u2019s really how it turned out.\u201d
\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sportsrabbi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/burgbu.webp\")
Ethan Burg – Photo Credit: FIBA<\/p><\/div> \u201cI said to myself this isn\u2019t something I can let slip through my fingers. I can\u2019t allow that. First and foremost, I brought the energy. That was the most important thing. And then I started connecting plays, which earned me a few more minutes. I understood that this is my role, to come off the bench, try to shift the momentum, bring energy and do whatever helps the team win.\u201d<\/p>\n You\u2019ve kind of always been an underdog in your career. Is that a role you enjoy?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a position I\u2019ve gotten used to, let\u2019s say it that way. I think from the moment I left Maccabi Beit Dagan, when I was 14 or 15, from that point on I\u2019ve mostly played as an underdog. But wherever I go, whether expectations are high or low, I don\u2019t deal with that. I focus on myself and my work.\u201d Ethan Burg – Photo Credit: FIBA<\/p><\/div> \u201cIt was chilling. It hurt me personally. It was really jarring to hear that kind of response. The more they booed, the louder we sang. We shouted the anthem, we were proud of the flag, proud of who we are and of our nation. We\u2019re never ashamed as it\u2019s an honor and a huge privilege to wear these uniforms, especially here in Poland. You hear the boos, you see all that hate and that made it even sweeter to win that game.\u201d<\/p>\n How much did the crowd help against France?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWow, it was a huge boost. Huge. Even during the booing, you could still hear the anthem. Not just us, also the fans who were shouting it out. Yesterday, we felt that in both numbers and passion we were stronger than anything. It\u2019s amazing that we\u2019re not coming in like scared Israelis anymore. We\u2019re here. We\u2019ve arrived. And we\u2019re here to stay. I love it that everyone\u2019s into it and we\u2019re all in it together. And how should I put it? We\u2019ve got a motto on the team from the beginning \u2018I love this.\u2019 So yeah, I really love this. And thanks to everyone who came yesterday it\u2019s not taken for granted.\u201d Deni Avdija – Photo credit – FIBA<\/p><\/div> \u201cFirst of all it\u2019s insanely fun. This is my first time playing with Deni. I played against him once in high school league, I was 17, he was 18 and of course, he destroyed us. Playing with him now is a really nice coming full-circle moment but again this is just the beginning. I hope to team up with Deni again in future national teams and I hope to play with or against him in the best league in the world. I feel like it\u2019s in my hands.\u201d<\/p>\n You\u2019re part of a big trend of European and especially Israeli players heading to play college ball. What led you there?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI think it was really the opportunity. I had offers from Maccabi, Holon, Hapoel Tel Aviv and Hapoel Jerusalem, but when the colleges called, I said, \u2018What do I have to lose? This is interesting.\u2019 So I went to see it with my own eyes. And what I saw was endless opportunities to improve. The level of professionalism is something and I say this with regret, that this just doesn\u2019t exist here in Israel. It doesn\u2019t. It\u2019s a different kind of money invested in facilities, infrastructure, coaching everything the system has to offer.\u201d Ethan Burg – Photo Credit: FIBA<\/p><\/div> \u201cThey\u2019re a bit on edge. I\u2019ve been in constant contact with them from the start, completely transparent. I kept telling them: \u2018Look, there\u2019s no guarantee I\u2019ll make the final squad, so for now it\u2019s just practice, we\u2019ll go through the cuts and see.\u2019 Every time, there was that phone call that I had to make and say, \u2018Guys, I made it through another round.\u2019 And you could hear the joy mixed with disappointment on their end. But at the end of the day they\u2019re supportive. I think it\u2019s a huge honor to be a college player at EuroBasket. I don\u2019t know how many are here, I haven\u2019t checked p but it\u2019s a big honor, for me and for them too.\u201d<\/p>\n How do you prepare for Luka Don\u010di\u0107?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cFirst comes Belgium. Luka\u2019s a huge name, of course and actually, the game against him is also on my birthday, so there\u2019s extra motivation to win. But Belgium comes first, the most important thing is to come focused on that game. We\u2019re coming to win especially with the amazing crowd that showed up and supported us yesterday, they give us the strength. That\u2019s the full focus right now just on Belgium.\u201d \u201cWe\u2019ll go as far as we push ourselves. We\u2019ve got a great coach, we\u2019ve got amazing players and we\u2019ve got incredible fans. We really feel it. Against France, we felt what we did for the entire country. The support we\u2019re getting is enormous and that\u2019s such an enormous and special thing. I\u2019m sure that in the next game, we\u2019ll come out with crazy passion and energy.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When Ethan Burg was called up to the preliminary squad of the Israel National Tem ahead of the European Championship, many eyebrows were raised. The guard, who is about to start his first season in the NCAA, had just finished a pretty mediocre season with Bnei Herzliya. Still, Burg survived cut after cut and ultimately […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":58,"featured_media":154114,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[6271,6498,29,5773],"class_list":["post-154126","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-holy-land-hoops","tag-eitan-burg","tag-ethan-burg","tag-israel","tag-tennessee","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nYou didn\u2019t play against Iceland, just two minutes against Poland. What went through your mind when Ariel Beit Halachmi subbed you in against France?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sportsrabbi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_7826.webp\")
\nHard not to mention the booing during the anthem before the Poland game. How did you feel about that?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sportsrabbi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_0981.jpeg\")
\nThree years ago, you said on the podcast \u201cThe Sports Rabbi Podcadt\u201d that your dream was to play with Deni Avdija. So first of all, what\u2019s it like to realize that dream? And second, what\u2019s the goal for three years from now?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sportsrabbi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_7823.webp\")
\nHow are they handling the fact that you haven\u2019t joined Tennessee for training yet?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sportsrabbi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_0972.webp\")
\nWhat\u2019s the ceiling for this team?<\/strong><\/p>\n