Maccabi Tel Aviv sealed the Israeli league championship on Tuesday night, beating Hapoel Tel Aviv 3-1 in the playoff final series, and is now already looking ahead to next season. The club is expected to strengthen the roster, but many of this year’s players are likely to stay. The report lays out the status of the coaching staff, the contracted players, and the main contract talks still unresolved.
Head coach Oded Katash extended his deal in April for three more seasons, so he is set to lead the team through 2026-27. Assistant coach Guy Pnini is expected to remain and is close to signing a new contract. Club executive Claudio Coldebella is under contract until the end of next season as sporting director, but there have been reports linking him to the new basketball project in Rome. Maccabi says it still gets the impression that he plans to continue as usual, even though sources in Italy say otherwise.
Several players are already secured for next season, including TJ Leaf, Gur Lavy, Will Rayman, Jaylen Hoard, Jimmy Clark, and Roman Sorkin. Sorkin is also set for a new contract with a salary increase. Oshay Brissett is under contract for one more season, but has agreed to two additional years and will also receive a raise. John Dibartolomeo’s current deal is ending, but he has agreed to a two-year extension.
The unresolved cases are Tamir Blatt and Yovel Zoosman. Both are out of contract and negotiations for next season will continue from Wednesday, with financial gaps still remaining. Lonnie Walker is contracted for next season and is in the club’s plans, but he has an NBA exit clause until July 15. Zach Hankins is also out of contract and was not originally expected to stay, although a return is still possible.
