Got home almost 2 weeks ago. Great to be back. Just been hanging out, working out, and seeing friends etc. Going to be home for like 3 and a half months this summer, which is longer than I've been home in probably 5 years. Haven't been this excited for a summer in a long time. Got a bunch of stuff planned and a couple different trips on the books.
Looking back at the year, it was probably the least fun I've had playing basketball in a long time. Obviously there were a lot of good times too with alot of good guys on the two teams I played on, but overall it was a disappointing year. I never really considered myself someone who gets homesick per se, but this year I definitely wanted to get back.
I've shot around twice in the 2+ weeks that we got knocked out of the playoffs... probably the least I've played basketball in a long time. Can't say I'm too bothered by it though. I do enjoy just going to mess around in the gym, but it's not as if I feel compelled to do it right now. Pretty content to just work out and hang around. I have to wait until the beginning of June to hear from my current team if they want to option my contract for next season. If so I'll be back there, if not then I'll have to look at other options. Either way I'm not too worried about it.
I thought I was going to go on more of a rant about how the year went, but now I don't really feel like it. Suffice to say it was very disappointing and I hope to never have as down and frustrating a year again.
Sunday, 6 May 2012
Sunday, 22 April 2012
The Playoffs
Monday night we had game 1 of our first round quarterfinal playoff match up against the #2 team in the league, Be'er Yaakov. In the first match up of the year (before I got here) we had gotten beat by like 20 on our home court. In the second meeting, however, we went down there and played a great game and won by double digits.
The game started off pretty well and the score remained close until midway through the third quarter. We had some turnovers, bad shots, and the like and things just started unraveling. It was pretty crazy to see. One second it was a close game, the next we were down 20 points and the game was over. I was pretty uninvolved in the game and finished with basically no statistics in a handful of minutes.
Tuesday night we had "practice" which consisted of some shooting "games" that were mostly stupid, and going over some of our strategy for game 2.
Wednesday we did......... nothing. We didn't practice because it was Holocaust Remembrance Day and they couldn't get a gym for us. No, we did not practice the day before our elimination game and the possible end of our season.
Thursday was game day and surprisingly we came out pretty well. Luckily for me our center got 2 early fouls so I got to do my thing in the first half for a while. I had like 7 and 4 in the first half and we went up double digits in the second quarter while I was playing. Sadly for me, our center DIDN'T have foul trouble in the second half.... so I didnt play much. Be'er Yaakov also started playing their other star player (who was coming back from injury and they were kind of hoping to rest) and he absolutely killed us. When he subbed in he must have scored like 12 straight points. Needless to say he didn't look very injured. Anyways they made up about 15 points in the third quarter. Down the stretch in the fourth people took some bad shots and had some turnovers and we lost by a handful of points. At halftime I would never have believed we were going to lose.... but I can't say I was broken up. It's probably the most emotionally detached I've ever been to a season ending loss.
Since then we've just been hanging out, going to work out at the gym, and going out at nights. I went to Jerusalem on Friday to say goodbye to my family there and gave back my car this morning. We're still waiting to hear from the management about flights out, but I'm hoping it'll be Thursday morning by the latest. Glad to be finally going home
The game started off pretty well and the score remained close until midway through the third quarter. We had some turnovers, bad shots, and the like and things just started unraveling. It was pretty crazy to see. One second it was a close game, the next we were down 20 points and the game was over. I was pretty uninvolved in the game and finished with basically no statistics in a handful of minutes.
Tuesday night we had "practice" which consisted of some shooting "games" that were mostly stupid, and going over some of our strategy for game 2.
Wednesday we did......... nothing. We didn't practice because it was Holocaust Remembrance Day and they couldn't get a gym for us. No, we did not practice the day before our elimination game and the possible end of our season.
Thursday was game day and surprisingly we came out pretty well. Luckily for me our center got 2 early fouls so I got to do my thing in the first half for a while. I had like 7 and 4 in the first half and we went up double digits in the second quarter while I was playing. Sadly for me, our center DIDN'T have foul trouble in the second half.... so I didnt play much. Be'er Yaakov also started playing their other star player (who was coming back from injury and they were kind of hoping to rest) and he absolutely killed us. When he subbed in he must have scored like 12 straight points. Needless to say he didn't look very injured. Anyways they made up about 15 points in the third quarter. Down the stretch in the fourth people took some bad shots and had some turnovers and we lost by a handful of points. At halftime I would never have believed we were going to lose.... but I can't say I was broken up. It's probably the most emotionally detached I've ever been to a season ending loss.
Since then we've just been hanging out, going to work out at the gym, and going out at nights. I went to Jerusalem on Friday to say goodbye to my family there and gave back my car this morning. We're still waiting to hear from the management about flights out, but I'm hoping it'll be Thursday morning by the latest. Glad to be finally going home
Wednesday, 11 April 2012
A New Low
Oh ya forgot. Reached a new low in unprofessionalism after our game last night. After the game, our trainer/team didn't have any scissors to cut the tape off of ankles etc. Had to rip it off strip by strip. Some pieces got caught and I had to wait until we got home like 2 hours later to cut it off...
We didnt have Scissors. To cut tape.
Might seem like a small thing but it's more of a symbol of inadequacy. Hilarious.
Last Game of Reg Season
We lost last night in our regular season finale in Kiryat Ata. They are a couple spots down from us and didn't make the playoffs. We could have went up as high as 4th place if we had won, and a couple teams above us had lost.... but it didnt happen. It was a pretty crap game. Our import point guard hurt his hamstring in the first half so he didnt play too much. We gave up a lot of easy baskets and just did a crap job on defense. Final score was 101-96. I played a grand total of 4 minutes. thanks for nothing coach. I wouldn't be as pissed but our 'coach' talks to me like im going to play etc etc, then doesn't give me a chance. Just full of shit. Anyways we finish in 7th place and go into the first round, best of 3 playoff series against #2 Be'er Yaakov. I think the first game in Monday, and thankfully it's 2 games a week in the playoffs.
Monday, 9 April 2012
Also
Hilariously unprofessional week. We won our game last tuesday (the overtime game). Then had our usual day off Wednesday. Thursday we basically had fun in practice, playing 3 on 3 and 1 on 1 games, and shooting some. Friday we had off, Saturday we had off. Sunday we had real practice, and today we had practice but it was pretty bullshit. So we really only had one solid practice this week (Sunday). And yet its supposed to be "suuuuch an important game" tomorrow. Meh, whatever, I don't care, I was working out by myself but it's just a joke.
Playoffs baby
Last week we played our second last game of the season, at home vs Nes Ziona (who I think was in 4th place at the time)
Because of how the standings were with two games left, if we were to go 0-2, and the two teams below us both went 2-0, then we would end up in 9th place and out of playoffs. So this was a pretty big game to make sure we got in. Although if either of the teams below us lost then we would get in via tiebreak.
We started out the game pretty badly and were down 10 early. But we chipped away and by halftime it was only a few points difference. Second half we picked it up and I had a couple baskets. It was back and forth and nearing the end of the fourth our centre fouled out. So I was back in the game. We were up one when the foreigner from their team scored on a post up and put us down 1. On the ensuing possession our pg missed a jumper form the right wing that might have got tipped. I jumped up grabbed it and got fouled on the put back. So I went to the line, down 1 with 5 seconds to go.... Bricked the first one lol. But made the second one to tie it. The game went to overtime and we eventually pulled out the victory. I like to think I saved the game. Anyways point is we clinched the playoff spot with the win... although we found out later BOTH of the teams below us lost... so we were in the playoffs regardless.
Tomorrow is our last regular season game away at Kiryat Ata and only matters for seeding purposes. There's not alot of urgency on the team because all last week the coach/everyone just kept saying we just needed to win that last game blah blah etc etc. Then we won and now they're all saying how important this game is. Anyways not alot of pressure on this game so we'll see how people come ready to play. I'm clearly just trying to pad my stats so i'll be ready to go.
Playoffs start a week today, get hyphy
Because of how the standings were with two games left, if we were to go 0-2, and the two teams below us both went 2-0, then we would end up in 9th place and out of playoffs. So this was a pretty big game to make sure we got in. Although if either of the teams below us lost then we would get in via tiebreak.
We started out the game pretty badly and were down 10 early. But we chipped away and by halftime it was only a few points difference. Second half we picked it up and I had a couple baskets. It was back and forth and nearing the end of the fourth our centre fouled out. So I was back in the game. We were up one when the foreigner from their team scored on a post up and put us down 1. On the ensuing possession our pg missed a jumper form the right wing that might have got tipped. I jumped up grabbed it and got fouled on the put back. So I went to the line, down 1 with 5 seconds to go.... Bricked the first one lol. But made the second one to tie it. The game went to overtime and we eventually pulled out the victory. I like to think I saved the game. Anyways point is we clinched the playoff spot with the win... although we found out later BOTH of the teams below us lost... so we were in the playoffs regardless.
Tomorrow is our last regular season game away at Kiryat Ata and only matters for seeding purposes. There's not alot of urgency on the team because all last week the coach/everyone just kept saying we just needed to win that last game blah blah etc etc. Then we won and now they're all saying how important this game is. Anyways not alot of pressure on this game so we'll see how people come ready to play. I'm clearly just trying to pad my stats so i'll be ready to go.
Playoffs start a week today, get hyphy
Sunday, 1 April 2012
Rehab
Speaking of injuries.... I'll just go on a rant about the aftermath of getting hurt. We "have" a "trainer" on the team that is supposed to help out. But he's not really a team trainer... He only comes to practice on sundays, and then comes to games on tuesdays... so not exactly working 24/7. It's more like he is a normal guy and treats regular people, and if someone gets hurt they can go to him and he'll do his thing.
Even before all of this, I don't exactly trust the trainers out here. They are just taught and do things differently than we do in North America and it's just not comfortable to see things done differently than you're used to. Also we don't have any of the fancy (aka normal) equipment we would have back home. I.e. cold/hot whirl pool, ultrasound, electric stim, watever.
Back to our trainer. He has a 'clinic' that he works out of about 15 minutes away from where we live. So I would have to call him, schedule an appointment... which basically consisted of him trying to squeeze me in during his day. Sometimes I wouldn't be able to be squeezed in.... so no treatment that day. Then the coaches/management are asking me if I went to the trainer... I'm like, no he was all busy, etc etc. So then I'm supposed to tell them so they can call the trainer and curse him out or whatever. Like its my fault that they don't want to pay someone to work for them and help us. Luckily for them its not the first time I ever sprained an ankle and I generally know what I can do to help it out. It's been feeling better and hopefully will be back to 100% in the next couple of days.
And today i jammed my finger really hard :'(
Even before all of this, I don't exactly trust the trainers out here. They are just taught and do things differently than we do in North America and it's just not comfortable to see things done differently than you're used to. Also we don't have any of the fancy (aka normal) equipment we would have back home. I.e. cold/hot whirl pool, ultrasound, electric stim, watever.
Back to our trainer. He has a 'clinic' that he works out of about 15 minutes away from where we live. So I would have to call him, schedule an appointment... which basically consisted of him trying to squeeze me in during his day. Sometimes I wouldn't be able to be squeezed in.... so no treatment that day. Then the coaches/management are asking me if I went to the trainer... I'm like, no he was all busy, etc etc. So then I'm supposed to tell them so they can call the trainer and curse him out or whatever. Like its my fault that they don't want to pay someone to work for them and help us. Luckily for them its not the first time I ever sprained an ankle and I generally know what I can do to help it out. It's been feeling better and hopefully will be back to 100% in the next couple of days.
And today i jammed my finger really hard :'(
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