There is a reason that Scotty Wilbkin has been with Maccabi Tel Aviv for four seasons and is not leaving, and it is not just that he earns $ 1.8 million. It is clear to Wilbkin that in no other team in the Euroleague, certainly not in the majors, will he be able to conduct himself on the field as he conducts himself at Maccabi. Needless to say – Scotty Wilbkin does what he wants and no one, especially not Yannis Sapropoulos, can stop him. So much so that he established his status in the club.
Now fulfilled if it would come with receipts at the level of team success, but in three of his four seasons at the club – Maccabi Tel Aviv is an intermediate-bottom team in the Euroleague.
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His dominance obscures the others. Scotty Wilbkin
(Photo: Oz Mualem)
Wilbkin’s fourth quarter yesterday he shows everything written above: 0 points, 0 of 5 from the field, every shot harder than the second, endless dribbling, terrible decision making, and he still has not come off the floor, not even for one second to sip from the water bottle And put some oxygen in his head, since coming in after Kazan’s 0-7 run from a 66:63 lag to a 66:70 lead. Do you think that with Dimitrios Itudis, Sharas or Pablo Lasso he could have played like that and not been thrown on the bench after two minutes?
The problem with Wilbkin is that in light of his dominance, every player who comes to Maccabi Tel Aviv, no matter how good he is (James Nanley, Derek Williams), moves aside and gives him the stage. This greatly limits Maccabi Tel Aviv, and especially makes it predictable. For the opponent.
Yannis Sapropoulos has received many compliments in recent years. This season was also a period in which Maccabi Tel Aviv made the list and looked like a team that can speak loudly. But in the current crisis, Maccabi Tel Aviv is in a bit of a crisis (in all settings), the Greek coach has a huge part to play.
At least four games have been lost this season by Maccabi Tel Aviv due to poor ability in the fourth quarter, and especially the management and lack of understanding of Sapropoulos: the Red Star Belgrade, CSKA Moscow, Real Madrid and Kazan. Four games that if the Israeli champion takes, not even all of them but three of them, we are now talking about a fight for a home advantage in the playoffs and not about a fight to get into it at all.
Notice the fourth quarter of Maccabi Tel Aviv yesterday: 8 points, only 2 assists and 3 of 16 from the field – a team in a panic, there is no better definition, and the responsibility lies with Yannis. Who was last night and also against Real in the previous round, in the last 10 minutes the Greek freezes in place.
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Freezes in the last quarter. Yannis Sapropoulos
(Photo: Oz Mualem)
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Maccabi Tel Aviv players are disappointed
(Photo: Oz Mualem)
For the opening of the fourth quarter against Kazan, Sapropoulos came up with a strange, not to mention hallucinatory, quintet: Keenan Evans, James Nanley, Angelo Cloiaro, Oz Blazer and Jaylen Reynolds. Even Valimir Prasovic did not believe and laughed all the way as he took advantage of every Miss Match (especially of Mario Hazonia and Lorenzo Brown over Jaylen Reynolds) on the way to a 0-9 run that turned the game around. When Sapropoulos was already trying to react, the Russians were in momentum and had no chance, probably with the Wilbankanian form of play “I am against the world and whatever.”
This loss is frustrating because the offense, in the first three quarters, the host played fine, even well. The balls went in to Ante Žižić, who took advantage of his color after a difficult period in previous games against Mustafa Pal and Walter Tavares. Maccabi Tel Aviv also went a lot to the penalty line in the first 30 minutes (26 times), which showed a clear game plan. Quite a few times.
To the stenciled and expected attacking game in the fourth quarter should also be added the defensive game of Maccabi Tel Aviv in the current crisis. In three of the four consecutive losses in the Euroleague, the team absorbed 85 points or more. When no player in yellow managed to stop Lorenzo Brown in one of his best games of his career (26 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds).
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Good opening. Ante Žižić sinks
(Photo: Oz Mualem)
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Will he give up the ball? Wilbkin and Nanley
(Photo: Oz Mualem)
Sapropoulos should now decide. By the end of the first round there were three uncomfortable games left to say the least (Fener out and Anadolu at home next week, and Zenit out in two weeks). If he continues in the same style and game management in the fourth quarter, along with another fall in defense, do not be surprised if Maccabi Tel Aviv stands on a streak of seven losses at the end of the round, which means quite clear – moving away from the places from which qualify for the playoffs.
On the other hand, Sapropoulos can choose the logical way – to get the ball out of Wilbkin’s hands, at least in the opening of the fourth quarter, to allow everyone to touch this orange thing on offense, even God forbid the other creative players he has on the roster, because worse than Maccabi recently played in money time Can play. The question is whether he can do it for Wilbkin. Really not sure.
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