Hapoel Jerusalem's New Signing Praises Former Maccabi Tel Aviv Player Tripunovic's Breakout Season

Orosh Tripunovic, who joined Maccabi Tel Aviv last summer but saw limited playing time before transferring to Turk Telekom, has enjoyed a successful season in the Turkish league and EuroCup. American-Croatian guard Jaylen Smith, Hapoel Jerusalem's new acquisition and a former teammate of Tripunovic at Partizan Belgrade and Turk Telekom, praised Tripunovic's improved performance and mindset in a recent interview. Smith noted that Tripunovic underwent a significant transformation, attributing it to reduced pressure after moving from a high-expectation club like Partizan to a new environment in Turkey. "He might have felt a lot of pressure in Serbia, especially playing for Partizan," Smith said. "It’s different being a foreign player at Partizan than being Serbian there. He probably carried a heavy burden, but after moving to Turkey, he started playing exceptionally." Tripunovic averaged 8.6 points per game in the EuroCup with a 48% three-point shooting percentage. Turk Telekom recently announced that Tripunovic will remain with the team for the upcoming season, where they aim to compete with Hapoel Jerusalem for the EuroCup title.