Why Maccabi Tel Aviv Left Lonnie Walker Out of the Finals Squad

Maccabi Tel Aviv will open the first game of the championship series on Tuesday at 8:00 p.m. on SPORT5 without its most expensive player, Lonnie Walker. Coach Oded Katash said Walker is fit to play, but he kept the scorer out of the Game 1 roster for professional reasons.

The main reason is game shape. Walker missed the semifinal series against Hapoel Holon, and before that he scored 13 and 7 points in the two games against Be'er Sheva. Maccabi also looked strong in the three games he missed in the previous series, which influenced the decision. Walker has said he wants to play and continue with the club in 2026/27.

Maccabi may register only five foreign players. Oshae Brissett and Jalen Hoard are already locked in, and both are viewed as essential. Brissett played 31 minutes in Game 2 against Holon and can defend Hapoel's guards. Hoard is currently perhaps Maccabi's best player, scoring 20.6 points per game in the playoffs and playing 37 minutes in Game 1 against Holon.

That left three foreign slots. Tamir Blatt's injury has hurt Maccabi's playmaking, so the team registered Yifa Lundberg and Jimmy Clark. Lundberg has averaged six assists and 1.6 turnovers in the playoffs. Clark, back from injury, is seen as the better defender and interceptor, and can play both guard spots. The final slot went to a center, since Roman Sorkin is Maccabi's only Israeli big man after injuries to T.J. Leaf and Gur Lavi. Katash said before the series, "We will need big players." The decision to prioritize size and the lack of playing rhythm for Walker mean he may still appear later in the series, but for now the choice is not really in his hands.