It’s been over a year since Maccabi Tel Aviv’s surprising Euroleague upset of Real Madrid. Former Maccabi coach David Blatt now finds himself in a similar situation, the underdog in a championship series, this time coaching the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals. After enduring months of scrutiny, Blatt molded a team with three superstars into a contender, now only three games from breaking a decades-long championship drought for the city of Cleveland. From a publicly ridiculed relationship with Lebron James, to issues with fitting in and injuries for Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, can his rookie season be considered a success?

TLV1’s Matt Jevotovsky hears from Guy Baratz, an intern for Maccabi’s strength and conditioning staff and former Cleveland resident, about the sentiment towards Blatt in the locker room and his feelings as an Israeli Cavs fan. He also speaks with Brandon Robinson, an American sports and entertainment reporter and contributor for Arise TV, Vibe, and Ebony, on the attitude towards Blatt’s work within America.

This is a segment from Weekend Edition. Listen to the full show.

Music:

John Tesh – Roundball Rock
Kurtis Blow – Basketball
The Presidents of the United States of America – Cleveland Rocks