![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sportsrabbi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/20211101-622498-scaled.jpg\")
Jake Cohen – Photo Credit: Basket.co.il<\/p><\/div>\n
OPENER<\/h2>\n
Maccabi Tel Aviv have a problem and it\u2019s one of those problems which is both good and bad. One one hand they have 15 Euroleague level players, on the other they can only dress 12 of them per game. Two of the players who have been outside looking in are Jake Cohen and Oz Blayzer who have been able to play in Israeli league games but can\u2019t crack the continental squad.<\/p>\n
Cohen, who is currently in his third stint with the Yellow & Blue returned to Israel this past summer after a season in Spain with Obradoiro. While he was an integral piece of Coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos\u2019s roster two years ago averaging about 13 minutes per game he has been wiped out this time around.<\/p>\n
Below is an excerpt from the article which you can READ IN FULL BY CLICKING HERE<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n For the 31-year old Cohen it\u2019s not easy to sit back and want to be out there on the floor with his teammates what are always make or break Euroleague games. With that in mind, Cohen who scored 10 points with a pair of 3-pointers along with 4 rebounds and 4 assists against Bnei Herzliya earlier in the week, will need to ratchet up his level of play in the Israeli league to prove to Sfairopoulos and his staff that he deserves to regain his place in continental ball.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been in the situation many times before,\u201d Cohen began. \u201cIt\u2019s sort of the nature of beast here Maccabi with 15 players and that\u2019s how it\u2019s going to go sometimes. The only thing that you can control is how you respond to it.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cAre you going to put your head down and pout or keep working doing the things you do and do your routine and stay ready. Thankfully, my experience has taught me to stay ready and be patient. Hopefully Euroleague minutes will come.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Matt Costello – Photo Credit: Euroleague<\/p><\/div>\n Ahead of tonight\u2019s Maccabi Tel Aviv Euroleague game in Spain against Baskonia, The Sports Rabbi spoke with one of Baskonia\u2019s new stars Matt Costello who joined the club over the summer. Costello was very forthcoming about his time that he spent in the NBA and below is an excerpt from the interview which you can READ IN FULL BY CLICKING HERE<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n Following four years with the Spartans, it was off to the G-League for a couple of years with Iowa and Austin. In his second campaign as a pro, Costello was called up to play with the San Antonio Spurs after having signed a two-way contract in the summer of 2017 which was surreal he explained.<\/p>\n \u201cIt didn\u2019t feel real the whole time. You always dream about playing on the NBA as a kid and I\u2019m sitting on the bench and then check into the game, it\u2019s like I\u2019m from a small town and this is not supposed to happen. It was surreal. You try to focus on the basketball part when you\u2019re there and remember the experience.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Costello felt that if he had been a bit more focused on the ultimate goal when he was with the big team perhaps he could have stuck with the club.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cI kicked myself because at the time I was happy to just be there. Maybe I was young and dumb. I took it seriously with my same routine that I still have now, but mentally I wish I would have flipped over and showed that this is what I\u2019m here for. Overseas it\u2019s been able to help me as you have to come in with a killer mentality as there may be someone who wants to take your job and you\u2019ve got to do everything to hold onto it. I wish I would have taken more of it seriously and would love to one day go back to play in front of family.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Check out October’s Top 10 Plays from October Israel League Action!<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sportsrabbi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/matthew-costello-bitci-baskonia-vitoria-gasteiz-eb21-1.jpg\")
HALFTIME<\/h2>\n
FINAL BUZZER<\/h2>\n