It is true to say that the differences are not counted - a loss of one point is like a loss of 30 points;
It is true to say that Elijah's hand returned to being a fortress;
It is true to say that there are great changes in the course of a series (see Olympiacos and Monaco);
And it is also likely that Real Madrid will not score 15 threes (as it has done on average so far).
Despite all this, in order not to end the Euroleague season tonight, Maccabi faces a great challenge.
Maccabi is not only two games behind, it went through a process of disillusionment last week.
The theories surrounding the series have shattered, and now it's much harder to play.
Maccabi arrived in euphoria, looked at its peak, and Real arrived with many problems and the biggest crisis it has known in the last decade.
There seemed to be no better chance of reaching the Final Four after eight seasons.
When all this faded, the yellow security received a severe blow, the sense of superiority was imagined.
So how do I get back?
First of all, come to terms with the plot twist - return to the underdog position.
While Real's top players have raised their level, Maccabi's players have taken a step back, and I'm not talking about Scotty Wilbkin but about Ante Zizic and James Nanali.
These are two different stories: Nanali Pablo Lasso Siman, he understood that even if Wilbkin is good, without another offensive tool Maccabi will not get along.
Adam Hanga fulfilled his role flawlessly, and Nanali was completely anemic.
From an average of 17.5 points and 18 threes in the six games that preceded the series, Nanali dropped to 8 points in the entire series, and only one basket to two points in games.
For Žižić the story is more complex, the difficulty against Real accompanies him throughout the season, he has a hard time with the presence of Walter Tavares and with the substitute Vincent Poirier who knows how to prevent him from freedom of action.
Zizic is insecure against Real, and scores less than 5 points on average this season.
But will his bench in the last game (Reynolds went up in the top five) help him get out of the tangle?
It is possible that the opposite is true, at least without these two - it will not go to Maccabi.
Its unequivocal and one-sided results in the series are also the difference between those who stand on the lines.
Pablo Lasso went through everything, experienced every situation and won every title, and on the other hand Avi Even is in his training as a coach.
The Spaniard is approaching 800 Euroleague and league games in his career, while Even has just crossed his first 20 games.
stone.
Will he get Maccabi out of the pit again? Photo: Alan Shiber
Crisis Management Specialist
Lasso makes good use of his training arsenal, controlling the series and not just the hardwood.
One of the things in which the Spanish coach is an expert in crisis management, but this time it seemed that the long crisis he had aggravated would be even greater, was a stage in which Real seemed unable to win.
But the coach who has managed the most games in the club's history, is currently struggling excellently.
At the start of the series Real looked like a team that had undergone a makeover.
They said it was a group of seven?
The Spaniards arrived with full motivation.
Were they talking about shooting problems?
Real scored 30 threes.
No coordinator?
Nigel Williams-Goss is excellent.
The veterans after the record?
Lasso gives them confidence, and gets 4 threes from Rudy Fernandez in the first game, and another 5 from Sergio Yui in the second game.
Everyone thinks that because of the importance of the games Lasso will bring back the suspended Hartl and Thompkins?
In the meantime, he uses them to "scare" Maccabi, and does not include them in the squad during a brave course where all the responsibility is on him.
Were we wrong?
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