Hapoel Holon’s season ended dreamily tonight (Thursday) with a second win in the club’s history in the championship. The road there was full of ups and downs, mostly ups and downs, moments where the character of quite a few players was measured, and Holonia as a team managed to come out almost every time with their hand on the top, en route to a historic Final Four in a European factory and a uniquely sweet finish with the most important title.
Looking ahead, the Purples’ budget, which this year was between NIS 13-12 million, is expected to remain the same next season. At the same time, the club hopes to be able to leverage the success from the current season and increase sponsorships. The ultimate goal for the new champion will be to keep the skeleton as much as possible, especially the Israeli, and from there to move on.
It is also impossible not to say a good word about the team’s management, which has quietly built a team that in the last two years has positioned itself at the top of Israeli basketball and also established its position in Europe, in the FIBA Champions League.
Guy Goodes – Score 9
When you look at Goodes’ season, it’s amazing to see where it started, how it continued and above all the way it ended – from Maccabi Rishon Lezion, through the parting, the negotiations with Holon that almost fell because of an option that was eventually promised, and finally of course winning the championship. Goodes has shown, for the umpteenth time, exactly what he’s worth as a coach. He came to a team that was in crisis, with its back to the wall, in a situation not easy at all and in the best way of the national coach, his team took one step forward each time, continued to improve day by day and became a cohesive unit that reached its peak at just the right moment. Goodes’ assistant, Amit Sharaf, is also highly regarded at the club, where more than one is interested in keeping him and he is expected to continue.
Contractual status: Guaranteed contract for next year
Joe Ragland – Score 8.5
Games: 34
The architect of success, coordinator in the full sense of the word, the owner of the house on the floor, distributes candies (assists), hits from the outside, penetrates and on the way lowers the head of Hapoel Jerusalem, in games 1 and 3 in the semifinal series, 70 points. Ragland’s displays in both frames have undoubtedly raised his value in the market and Holonia, who very much wants to keep him, hopes that he will also succeed, what is more, his stay will greatly affect the continuation of construction for next season.
Contract status: Interested in continuing with it, but it is clear that last season has raised its price
Tire Maggie – Score 8.5
Games: 20
Maggie, the guard with the ice in her veins and the one who always advises people to drink water, especially on hot summer days, arrived in Holonia by air train from Burgos and showed from the first second that he seemed to have never left. The Purples got the guard who knows how to press the ball, score beyond the arc of shots with unimaginable difficulty, finish near the ring and score from the penalty line whether there is a second left on the game clock or less. Maggie’s combination with Ragland worked great and the two came to do the job just when they needed to and complemented each other in a simply wonderful way.
Contract status: Ending a contract, its continuation depends first and foremost on the player’s wishes, the club will be happy to see him continue but understand that the task will be particularly difficult
Chris Johnson – Score 8
Games: 33
The defensive player of the season, a player with a huge heart, who beyond the numbers was the glue of Guy Goodes, of Maurizio Buscalia and also of Stefanos Dadas last season. When preparing for the game against Holonia, the first premise is that he will be the defensive team for the opponent’s most important offensive player. In addition to all this, Johnson belongs to the breed that plays with maximum effort – he does not know what it is to play at 20%, 50% or 80%, with him it is always 100%. Throughout the season on more than one occasion Johnson, who can maintain a variety of positions and players, has been there and big for Guy Goodes on the offensive side as well.
Contract status: A contract is guaranteed for next season
Michael Kaiser – Score 8
Games: 33
Kaiser is a specific player with a good finish over the ring, an impressive ability on the rebound, shooting from half distance and a blocking ability that actually ensured the victory in the third and decisive game in the semifinal series against Hapoel Jerusalem. The forward / center, who is highly dependent on the center playing alongside him, had incidents with both Maurizio Buscalia and Guy Goodes, but his ability was nothing short of a mainstay on both sides of the pitch for Holonia, en route to an exemplary season. Because he is a player who is very dependent on the coordinator who plays alongside him, since he is a pick and roll, his continuation in the club depends on the question of who the coordinator will be, as well as the high Israeli situation in the market.
Contract status: Depends on the Israeli center and height
Frederick Bourdieu – Score 7.5
Games: 30
“Freddie” is a complementary player, and most players on this standard do not get such a score. But Bourdieu is a great guard who can harass and also harassed quite a few backline players of the rivalry, he scores well from the outside, and in the last three years he has won the championship with Maccabi Tel Aviv, the Balkan league with Hapoel Holon, and this year the championship with Holonia. Bourdieu also got another score for his sacrifice when in recent weeks he has played with a torn miniscus until he could no longer and this is a piece of sacrifice that is definitely worth appreciating.
Contract status: Ends contract and Holon are interested in extending his contract
Rafi Manko – 7.5
Games: 35
The emotions, the threes and especially the fire burning inside him. Rafi Manko was this season the player that every coach would want to go into battle with, and not in vain. Beyond the numbers and percentages, Rafi Manko is without a shadow of a doubt one of Holonia’s pleasant surprises this season. These are not the ability or the numbers that surprised, but how much fun it was to see the forward on the floor this year at the Toto Hall in Holon, and in fact on every floor he stepped on.
Contract status: There is a two-way exit option in the contract, the club will be happy to see him stay
Guy Pnini – Score 7
Games: 35
The player of the decade, the man and the clutch, who attacked inside for closures for three, is responsible for countless threes from the corner and the wing and in fact from almost everywhere, ends a contract in Holon when his future is still in the fog. In terms of winning the championship is not his last word as an active player, and he wants to keep playing. Pnini went on to show that in his minutes on the floor there is another coordinator / coach on the floor with a very high basketball IQ and the ability to lead and unite his teammates. The question will of course be his future at a club that wants to keep the skeleton as much as possible with an emphasis on the local skeleton.
Contract status: Ending a contract, its continuation depends on the situation and the desire of the player
Adam Smith – Score 7
Games: 13
It’s weird to write about a player who got a score of 7 that he is not expected to continue, but it is important to remember that Smith arrived during the season as a replacement for Stephen Gray. The guard whose physical dimensions are not exactly impressive, whose athleticism is not out of the ordinary (relatively) and whose shooting technique looks a bit strange, provided appearances for the Pantheon and won games on his own, but when the opportunity came in the total disintegration of Burgos, the club brought back Tire Stuff. At the same time Smith’s heart is without a doubt one of the biggest and his name is engraved on this championship plate just like the names of the rest of his teammates.
Contract status: Ends contract and is not expected to continue
Hayden Dalton – 6.5
Games: 10
The situation of the forward, who even reached the semi-final series only after Steve Zack was injured in training just before the first meeting against Hapoel Jerusalem, is a bit strange. In the Holonia uniform as part of the league’s regular season, Dalton played exactly five games, but in the playoffs he doubled the amount of games. His shooting from the outside as well as the ability in battle on the boards more did their thing.
Contract status: Ends a contract, depending on the method of play and the rest of the highs
Steve Zack – Score 5.5
Games: 16
The chin that came during the season as part of an allotment of improvements and deepening of the staff towards the sequel did its part in the end, set good averages and was a part of his team’s success in all the factories. The thing for Zack is his role as a rotation player, which he said he performed faithfully. At the same time he was not a tie-breaker and it seems that Guy Goodes and his team were more successful with the forward lineups which were much more mobile and allowed for more offensive options.
Contract status: Ends contract and is not expected to continue
Niv Misgav – No score (too few games)
Games: 16
Misgav did not play much this season, the injuries that the guard experienced disabled him for long periods and there is no doubt that if he had played more, he would have continued to show the line of improvement he showed last season. Already during the playoffs he has shown he can keep his team in momentum in the minutes he plays and even make his teammates better. In the third and decisive game against Hapoel Jerusalem, he had great minutes, but during the regular season, the guard only participated in nine games. In the playoffs he no longer missed a game, and the taste he left behind is a taste of more. If it was possible to give him a score solely on his ability in the playoffs, it would not be a bad score at all.
Contract status: Ends a contract and want to continue with it
Omar Tal – without a grade
Games: 25
Tal arrived during the season after Misgav’s injury, he did not play enough, and his continuation in the club depends very much on what will happen in Misgav’s sector. If the latter leaves, it is not impossible that in Holonia they will work to keep Tal, but if Misgav stays, Tal is expected to leave.
Contractual status: Holon exit option, expected to leave and depends on Misgav
