Hapoel Tel Aviv owner blasts Israeli basketball after championship loss

After Hapoel Tel Aviv lost the Israeli Basketball Premier League final series to Maccabi Tel Aviv and missed out on the championship, team owner Ofer Yannay delivered a fierce attack on Israeli basketball institutions. He said the club had faced "headwinds" throughout the playoffs from bodies that were supposed to be objective.

Yannay argued that the situation could not continue, saying, "We cannot continue to be in a situation where competition in Israel is not competition on equal terms." His comments came in the wake of the title loss to the yellow team, which sealed another championship for Maccabi Tel Aviv.

He also warned that during the summer he intends to devote much of his energy and talent to making sure the "pathetic and corrupt lineups" he said inhabit Israeli basketball will no longer remain in place. His remarks signal a broader confrontation with the sport's governing and institutional framework after the final.