Sfairopoulos steering Maccabi back among the EuroLeague elite

Just one year after making the move to Israeli basketball, Ioannis Sfairopoulos has helped Maccabi Tel Aviv climb back among the EuroLeague elite.

Watch LIVE GREEK TV including full GREEK SPORTS coverage with Go Greek TV! 

Maccabi Tel Aviv are back among the European elite after a strong start to the 2019/2020 season has the Israeli side sitting just two games off the EuroLeague summit.

Head coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos has played a leading role in the club’s turnaround as the Greek coach has been instrumental in rebuilding the team since his move to Tel Aviv last Autumn.

After Sfairopoulos’ contract was allowed to expire by former club Olympiacos at the end of the 2017/2018 season, the 52-year-old coach was free to replace Neven Spahija in Tel Aviv after a rocky 1-6 run to start the 2018/2019 EuroLeague season.

Sfairopoulos’ impact was felt almost immediately as Maccabi slowly worked their way up the EuroLeague standings before finishing just one-game off the final playoff spot last season.

A summer of recruitment saw Maccabi make some notable moves in the transfer market with the arrival of Omri Casspi and Tyler Dorsey from the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies as well as former Olympiacos big man Othello Hunter.

The new arrivals, matched with Sfairopoulos’ tactics, have seen Maccabi pull-off somewhat of a 180 on the EuroLeague stage as the club holds an 11-5 record through the first 16 rounds of action.

Sfairopoulos’ tactics have employed a back-to-basics strategy that has seen the club make the Menora Mivtachim Arena a fortress once again as Maccabi remain a perfect 7-0 on home court.

 Maccabi’s success has been in large part to momentum as the Israeli side have used two multi-game win streaks to climb out of a 0-2 start to the season, including a six-game win streak that featured wins over Fenerbahce, Olympiacos, and Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz.

Besides home court advantage and momentum, Maccabi’s early season success is based on solid play at both ends of the court. The Israeli club currently own the third-best offense with an average of 85.75 points per game, with Scottie Wilbekin’s 16.31 points per game leading the way for Sfairopoulos’ side.

Maccabi have also been efficient at the other end of the court with the EuroLeague’s fourth-best defense with an average of just 76.25 points per game with the team’s attention to detail on the backend a major contributor. Maccabi currently sit third in the league in terms of rebounds while the side lead all teams with an average of 8.44 steals per game.

Sfairopoulos’ departure from Olympiacos was always a curious one as the Greek coach had helped the club reach two EuroLeague Finals in four years, but what he has been able to do in Tel Aviv raises further questions if the decision to let Sfairopoulos walk was the right one.

by Peter Katsiris

Image Source: to10.gr

Thank you for visiting AGONAsport.com, the only English based website for Greek sports fans across the world! Like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and Twitter for all the latest news in Greek Sports!