Israel - Maccabi Tel Aviv has six decision makers, Vitoria just one

From www.haaretz.com
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Basqueland has been good to former Maccabi Tel Aviv coach Neven Spahija these past three months. He drives every morning to Tau Vitoria's impressive arena in his spanking new Audi A5 and gets chummy with his players. "Since summer practice started," attests Vitoria star Igor Rakocevic, "Neven has really acted like our friend. He is young at heart, he loves dressing elegantly, to talk about his car and tell us jokes. Unlike other coaches, he doesn't feel the need to be too tough."

Vitoria associates acknowledge Spahija rarely discusses what he underwent last season, and when he does it's about missing the city of Tel Aviv, not what happened within the not-so-friendly confines of Yad Eliahu. "I'm not used to leaving a city after only one year," admits the coach in a conversation with Haaretz. "I usually stay a long time once I get somewhere. Take my three years in Vilnius as an example."

Spahija, so his friends in Israel say, misses Tel Aviv's sizzling scene, the fine restaurants and the warm reception he often enjoyed from the street. He makes sure to keep up with what's going on at his former club, even though its owners pushed him out at the beginning of the summer. About a week ago, for example, Spahija's brother-in-law, Cibona's physiotherapist, attended a game at Yad Eliahu. He gave Spahija constant live updates using his cell phone. Coach Spahija is particularly interested in Lior Eliyahu, whom he considers a personal prospect - and keeps in touch with Regev Fanan and assistant coach Guy Goodes.

Vitoria doesn't compare with Tel Aviv in its attractiveness, and Spahjia has to deal with the transition from the partying in the Dan region to the family atmosphere of this Basque city where most businesses close by 9 P.M. He compensates by flying in friends and family for frequent visits. His friends in Israel say that last year, the coach laid out $14,000 to bring in associates to Tel Aviv, a sum expected to grow this year.

The two cities are separated by more than just nightlife. They are also world's apart in management style.

What's the difference working with Maccabi management as opposed to Vitoria management?

"There are six decision makers at Maccabi but just one at Vitoria (president Jose Antonio Querejeta), and it's a big difference. Before I came to Maccabi, I knew it wasn't just that it was six, it was that each of them is liable to whisper something in your ear during a game. It didn't surprise me; I prepared for it."

And how is it to move from the Israeli league to the second-best league in the world?

"It's unbelievable. In this league, every game is a battle. We strive to compete for the championship and to make the Euroleague Final Four, two enormous challenges. Winning the Euroleague and the Spanish championship are equally tough."

Spahija demonstrated daring last summer, when he opted to wait until mid-August to accept an offer from a Euroleague club, rejecting the advances of Benetton Treviso, which currently plays in the second-tier ULEB Cup. When he landed in Vitoria, he found a team in crisis mode, facing the loss of Kaya Peker, Fred House, Serkan Erdogan and especially Luis Scola. Many predicted Tau would struggle to maintain its position as a dominant force in the absence of the Argentinian. "Vitoria's president told me when I joined that I can sign just one other player," recalls the coach. "I decided what I had was good enough for me."

Spahija has since taken the league by storm and hardly looks like a team that lost its unquestioned star. The Basque club is third in the Spanish league with a 7-2 record, including a 22-point victory over Malaga, two days after Malaga manhandled Maccabi Tel Aviv. Tau sits in Euroleague Group A with a 4-1 record, losing only to Olympiakos in Athens. The club hosts CSKA tonight in a battle for first place.

Run, Vitoria, run

Vitoria has the fourth most productive offense (87 points per game), and is second on the offensive boards (12 rebounds per game). Spahija's mark is undoubtedly present in the team's fast-paced, elegant play. "Neven demands strong defense from us with a lot of substitutions," says Rakocevic, "and on offense he insists we run as much as possible to use our athletic advantage. I admit I didn't expect we'd start the season so well, especially after Scola's departure."

The coach explains he can't run a controlled game like CSKA or Olympiakos, "because I don't have enough experienced players." He therefore expects tongight's matchup "to be very interesting between teams with substantially different styles."

Spahija says he likes to develop young players, such as Lior Eliyahu last season and 22-year old Mirza Teletovic this year.

Isn't it a shame you didn't get to mentor Eliyahu another season at Maccabi?

"Vitoria's style is the same I tried to instill at Maccabi, and I think we were on the right track. The problem is that Maccabi got used to a period when it had the biggest stars in Europe - like Saras and Parker. Now it doesn't want to pay the necessary sums to bring in European stars. So, I went with the concept of developing young players like Eliyahu, Halperin and Bynum. Caspi is also an excellent example of a player who could develop.

"My plan, had I stayed at Maccabi as written in my contract, was to continue with these young guys alongside the veterans, like Vujcic, Burstein, Arnold and Sharp - and to add this summer only two players, but the kind with European experience that cost money. Maccabi chose not to let me continue, and that's their choice. People like Goodes and Fanan know exactly what my plans were."

And how do you feel about Maccabi stopping the process you planned and hiring an inexperienced coach essential to rebuilding the team from scratch?

"Picking an inexperienced coach is legitimate. I also started out that way when I got the job with Cibona after being its assistant coach. Why did Maccabi decide not to let me continue building and instead to start all over with Katash? You need to ask them at the end of the day."

Katash gave Bynum a lot of backing early in the season, but there was talk two weeks ago he might release him.

"It really surpises me. How can you sign a guy to a two-year contract in the summer and want to let him go two months later? Will is a fantastic player. You need to understand he's not a point guard but a combo guard. You just don't release a player with such amazing talent who will be one of the greatest in Europe yet, certainly not after signing him for two seasons."