Jonathan Alon, who was officially appointed Tuesday as professional manager at Hapoel Emeq, looked back on his recent stint on Hapoel Jerusalem’s bench in an interview with the Sport 5 program "Chamishiyot." He said the last months in Jerusalem were difficult, describing a constant feeling of survival. "There was always a sense that everything could collapse at any moment," he said, adding that many around the club had not grown up as lifelong Hapoel Jerusalem supporters, but had found themselves in an unstable situation.
Alon also recounted the first game in the playoff series against Hapoel Tel Aviv, which was stopped on orders from the Home Front Command. He said the teams were taken off the court midway through the game and that David Bason brought him, Omer Astron and Itoudis into Hapoel Tel Aviv’s coaches’ room to explain the evacuation process and the plan to return to play. When Alon relayed that to his players, some told him they could not play. He said he could not demand they immediately continue under those conditions, so he brought club officials in to assess the situation.
According to Alon, the response from his side was bluntly honest. Players said they could not focus on basketball, and he told them, "Guys, I’m with you." He then apologized to Itoudis, saying the team could not get its players back on the floor and that it was a situation no one could realistically succeed in.
The interview also touched on other major issues from his time at the club, including the next-day court decision to order a replay, the reversal of that ruling hours before the third game, and questions about Kadin Carrington’s mindset, a summer offer of roughly $1 million from Ofer Yanai, reports about Sasha Obradovic, and the arrival of Anthony Lamb. Alon was also asked whether he saw himself more as a basketball person or a manager.
