# 2017–18 Israeli Basketball Premier League

The 2017–18 Israeli Basketball Premier League, for sponsorship reasons Ligat Winner, was the 64th season of the Israeli Basketball Premier League. Hapoel Jerusalem is the defending champion.

## Competition format

Twelve teams took part in the regular season, where they played against each other four times home-and-away in a double round-robin format. The first eight qualified teams advanced to the playoffs. The last qualified team was relegated to the Liga Leumit. The regular season started 8 October 2017.

## Teams

Ironi Nes Ziona has been promoted to the league after winning 2016–17 National League, and comes back just one year after their relegation. Maccabi Kiryat Gat, who finished in last place during the 2016–17 season, relegated to the Liga Leumit

### Stadia and locations

| Team | Home city | Stadium | Capacity |
| Bnei Herzliya | Herzliya | HaYovel Herzliya | 1,500 |
| Hapoel Eilat | Eilat | Begin Arena | 1,490 |
| Hapoel Gilboa Galil | Gilboa Regional Council | Gan Ner Sports Hall | 2,100 |
| Hapoel Holon | Holon | Holon Toto Hall | 5,500 |
| Hapoel Jerusalem | Jerusalem | Pais Arena | 11,000 |
| Hapoel Tel Aviv | Tel Aviv | Drive in Arena | 3,504 |
| Ironi Nahariya | Nahariya | Ein Sarah | 2,500 |
| Ironi Nes Ziona | Ness Ziona | Lev Hamoshava | 1,200 |
| Maccabi Ashdod | Ashdod | HaKiriya Arena | 2,200 |
| Maccabi Haifa | Haifa | Romema Arena | 5,000 |
| Maccabi Rishon LeZion | Rishon LeZion | Beit Maccabi Rishon | 2,500 |
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | Tel Aviv | Menora Mivtachim Arena | 10,383 |

### Personnel and sponsorship

| Team | Chairman | Head coach | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| Bnei Herzliya | Eldad Akunis | Arik Shivek | Peak | Rav-Bariach |
| Hapoel Eilat | Motti Amsalem | Sharon Drucker | And1 | Fattal |
| Hapoel Gilboa Galil | Haim Ohayon | Ariel Beit-Halahmy | Peak | |
| Hapoel Holon | Eitan Lanciano | Dan Shamir | Peak | UNET |
| Hapoel Jerusalem | Ori Allon | Oded Kattash | Macron | Bank Yahav |
| Hapoel Tel Aviv | Rami Cohen | Danny Franco | Peak | SP |
| Ironi Nahariya | Nissim Alfasi | Eric Alfasi | Peak | |
| Ironi Nes Ziona | Tomer Yamin | Nadav Zilberstein | Kappa | Hai Motors |
| Maccabi Ashdod | Meir Kikoz | Brad Greenberg | And1 | Kaplan Medical Center |
| Maccabi Haifa | Jeff Rosen | Barak Peleg | Peak | Hunter |
| Maccabi Rishon LeZion | Itzhak Peri | Zvika Sherf | Under Armour | ILAND.TV |
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | Shimon Mizrahi | Neven Spahija | Nike | FOX |

### Managerial changes

| Departure date | Team | Outgoing head coach | Reason | Hire date | Incoming head coach |
| November 9, 2017 | Hapoel Jerusalem | Fotios Katsikaris | Fired | November 9, 2017 | Modi Maor |
| November 14, 2017 | Hapoel Eilat | Meir Tapiro | Fired | November 18, 2017 | Sharon Drucker |
| December 5, 2017 | Bnei Herzliya | Mickey Gorka | Fired | December 20, 2017 | Arik Shivek |
| February 22, 2018 | Hapoel Jerusalem | Modi Maor | Fired | February 22, 2018 | Oded Kattash |
| April 10, 2018 | Maccabi Rishon LeZion | Shmulik Brener | Fired | April 10, 2018 | Zvika Sherf |
| April 22, 2018 | Maccabi Haifa | Offer Rahimi | Resigned | April 27, 2018 | Barak Peleg |

## Regular season

In the regular season, teams play against each other at least three times home-and-away in double a round-robin format. The six first qualified teams advance to the playoffs. The regular season started on 8 October 2017.

### Standings

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 33 | 23 | 10 | 2816 | 2620 | +196 | 56 | Advance to play-offs |
| 2 | Hapoel Holon | 33 | 22 | 11 | 2895 | 2792 | +103 | 55 | Advance to play-offs |
| 3 | Hapoel Jerusalem | 33 | 21 | 12 | 2738 | 2614 | +124 | 54 | Advance to play-offs |
| 4 | Maccabi Ashdod | 33 | 20 | 13 | 2722 | 2605 | +117 | 53 | Advance to play-offs |
| 5 | Hapoel Tel Aviv | 33 | 19 | 14 | 2756 | 2717 | +39 | 52 | Advance to play-offs |
| 6 | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 33 | 17 | 16 | 2749 | 2792 | −43 | 50 | Advance to play-offs |
| 7 | Hapoel Eilat | 33 | 16 | 17 | 2559 | 2613 | −54 | 49 | Advance to play-offs |
| 8 | Ironi Nes Ziona | 33 | 13 | 20 | 2704 | 2788 | −84 | 46 | Advance to play-offs |
| 9 | Ironi Nahariya | 33 | 13 | 20 | 2689 | 2760 | −71 | 46 | |
| 10 | Bnei Herzliya | 33 | 12 | 21 | 2612 | 2775 | −163 | 45 | |
| 11 | Maccabi Rishon LeZion | 33 | 11 | 22 | 2757 | 2792 | −35 | 44 | |
| 12 | Maccabi Haifa (R) | 33 | 11 | 22 | 2560 | 2689 | −129 | 44 | Relegation to Liga Leumit |

## Players strike

On May 22, 2018, the Israeli Basketball Players Association announced a strike after the league introduced a rule, which enforced the teams to have at least two Israeli players on court at the same time. On May 24, the league announced that the season would be ended with one regular season game remaining and that no playoffs would be held due to the ongoing strike.
However, on May 25, 2018, the Israeli League Management have reached an agreement with the Israeli Basketball Players Association and the strike ended.

## Play-offs

| Team 1 | Series | Team 2 | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4 | Game 5 |
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | 3–1 | Ironi Nes Ziona | 94–62 | 94–95 | 102–93 | 96–79 | - |
| Maccabi Ashdod | 1–3 | Hapoel Tel Aviv | 91–86 | 77–98 | 78–99 | 74–79 | - |
| Hapoel Jerusalem | 3–1 | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 78–85 | 93–85 | 107–105 | 99–74 | - |
| Hapoel Holon | 3–2 | Hapoel Eilat | 89–83 | 86–100 | 87–81 | 70-87 | 82-71 |
Source: Ligat Winner

## Final Four

| Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final |
| June 10 | June 10 |
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | 98 |
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | 98 | June 14 | June 14 |
| Hapoel Tel Aviv | 74 | June 14 | June 14 |
| Hapoel Tel Aviv | 74 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 95 |
| June 11 | June 11 | | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 95 |
| June 11 | June 11 | Hapoel Holon | 75 |
| Hapoel Holon | 80 | Hapoel Holon | 75 |
| Hapoel Jerusalem | 76 | | |

## Clubs in European competitions

| Team | Competition | Progress |
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | EuroLeague | Regular season |
| Hapoel Jerusalem | EuroCup | Regular season |
| Hapoel Holon | Champions League | Regular season |
| Bnei Herzliya | FIBA Europe Cup | Regular season |

## Final standings

| Pos | Team | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | Automatically qualified for 2018–19 EuroLeague |
| 2 | Hapoel Holon | Qualified for 2018–19 Basketball Champions League |
| 3 | Hapoel Jerusalem | Qualified for 2018–19 Basketball Champions League |
| 4 | Hapoel Tel Aviv | Qualified for 2018–19 Basketball Champions League |
| 5 | Maccabi Ashdod |
| 6 | Hapoel Gilboa Galil |
| 7 | Hapoel Eilat |
| 8 | Ironi Nes Ziona | Qualified for 2018–19 FIBA Europe Cup |
| 9 | Ironi Nahariya |
| 10 | Bnei Herzliya |
| 11 | Maccabi Rishon LeZion |
| 12 | Maccabi Haifa | Relegated to the Ligat Leumit |

## All-Star Game

The 2018 Israeli League All-star event was held on March 2, 2018, at the Menora Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv.
The International team won the game 137–122. The MVP of the game was Pierre Jackson who scored 18 points along with 6 assists.
Corey Webster won the Three-Point Shootout and Jaron Johnson won the Slam Dunk Contest.

### Rosters

Israeli All-Stars :
| Pos | Player | Team |
| Starters |||
| G | Tamir Blatt | Hapoel Holon |
| G | Adrian Banks | Hapoel Tel Aviv |
| F | Shawn Dawson | Bnei Herzliya |
| F | Amit Simhon | Hapoel Eilat |
| C | Alex Tyus | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
| Reserves |||
| G | Yiftach Ziv | Ironi Nahariya |
| G | Avi Ben-Chimol | Maccabi Rishon LeZion |
| G | Joaquin Szuchman | Hapoel Gilboa Galil |
| F | Willy Workman | Maccabi Haifa |
| F | Nimrod Levi | Maccabi Ashdod |
| F/C | Elishay Kadir | Ironi Nes Ziona |
| C | Richard Howell | Hapoel Jerusalem |
| F | Oz Blayzer | Maccabi Haifa |
| Head coach: Dan Shamir (Hapoel Holon) |||
| Head coach: Ariel Beit-Halahmy (Hapoel Gilboa Galil) |||
International All-Stars :
| Pos | Player | Team |
| Starters |||
| G | Pierre Jackson | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
| G | Jerome Dyson | Hapoel Jerusalem |
| F | Glen Rice Jr. | Hapoel Holon |
| F | Tony Gaffney | Hapoel Tel Aviv |
| F/C | Zach LeDay | Hapoel Gilboa Galil |
| Reserves |||
| G | Jordan Loyd | Hapoel Eilat |
| G | Khalif Wyatt | Ironi Nes Ziona |
| G | Sek Henry | Maccabi Ashdod |
| G | Jason Siggers | Maccabi Rishon LeZion |
| F | Alex Young | Ironi Nahariya |
| F/C | Brandon Bowman | Maccabi Haifa |
| F/C | Jeff Adrien | Bnei Herzliya |
| G | Derwin Kitchen | Hapoel Eilat |
| F | David Laury | Maccabi Ashdod |
| Head coach: Neven Spahija (Maccabi Tel Aviv) |||
| Head coach: Brad Greenberg (Maccabi Ashdod) |||

### Three-point shootout

Contestants :
| Pos. | Player | Team | 1st round | Final round |
| G | Corey Webster | Ironi Nahariya | 16 | 22 |
| F | Guy Pnini | Hapoel Holon | 20 | 15 |
| G | Tamir Blatt | Hapoel Holon | 17 | 15 |
| G | John DiBartolomeo | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 15 | - |
| F | Amit Simhon | Hapoel Eilat | 14 | - |
| G | Jerome Dyson | Hapoel Jerusalem | 8 | - |
| G | Khalif Wyatt | Ironi Nes Ziona | 8 | - |
| G | Or Cohen | Hapoel Jerusalem (Youth) | 8 | - |
| F | Jonathan Skjöldebrand | Ironi Nahariya | - | - |
Source: Basket.co.il

### Slam Dunk Contest

Contestants :
| Pos. | Player | Team | 1st round | 2nd round | Final round |
| F | Jaron Johnson | Ironi Nes Ziona | 40 | 40 | 39 |
| G | Adrian Banks | Hapoel Tel Aviv | 40 | 40 | 36 |
| G | Sek Henry | Maccabi Ashdod | 37 | - | - |
| F/C | Zach LeDay | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 34 | - | - |
Source: Basket.co.il

## Statistical leaders

| Points Pos Player Club PPG 1 Glen Rice Jr. Hapoel Holon 24.3 2 Zach LeDay Hapoel Gilboa Galil 19.5 3 Jordan Loyd Hapoel Eilat 17.4 4 Sek Henry Maccabi Ashdod 17.3 5 Jeff Adrien Bnei Herzliya 17.2 | Assists Pos Player Club APG 1 Avi Ben-Chimol Maccabi Rishon LeZion 7.2 2 Sek Henry Maccabi Ashdod 6.2 3 J'Covan Brown Hapoel Gilboa Galil 5.9 4 Pierre Jackson Maccabi Tel Aviv 5.3 5 Ángel Rodríguez Maccabi Haifa 4.7 |
| Rebounds Pos Player Club RPG 1 Demetrius Treadwell Hapoel Eilat 9.2 2 Talib Zanna Ironi Nes Ziona 8.9 3 Jeff Adrien Bnei Herzliya 8.8 4 Murphy Holloway Maccabi Rishon LeZion 8.5 5 Zach LeDay Hapoel Gilboa Galil 8.2 | Efficiency Pos Player Club PIR 1 Glen Rice Jr. Hapoel Holon 29.9 2 Zach LeDay Hapoel Gilboa Galil 23.0 3 Jeff Adrien Bnei Herzliya 21.2 4 Murphy Holloway Maccabi Rishon LeZion 20.1 5 Jordan Loyd Hapoel Eilat 20.0 |

### Other statistics

| Category | Player | Team | Average |
| Steals | Ángel Rodríguez | Maccabi Haifa | 2.4 |
| Blocks | Reginald Buckner | Maccabi Haifa | 1.5 |
| Turnovers | Ángel Rodríguez | Maccabi Haifa | 3.3 |
| Minutes | Amit Simhon | Hapoel Eilat | 34:20 |
| 2P% | Ronald Roberts | Hapoel Jerusalem | 76.9% |
| 3P% | Yotam Halperin | Hapoel Jerusalem | 48.5% |
| FT% | Corey Walden | Hapoel Holon | 92.0% |
Source: Basket.co.il

### Individual game highs

| Category | Player | Team | Total | Opponent |
| Points | Glen Rice Jr. | Hapoel Holon | 43 | Maccabi Ashdod (Nov 18, 17) |
| Rebounds | Zach LeDay | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 20 | Hapoel Jerusalem (Dec 10, 17) |
| Assists | Avi Ben-Chimol | Maccabi Rishon LeZion | 16 | Hapoel Tel Aviv (Apr 9, 18) |
| Steals | Pierre Jackson | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 7 | Ironi Nahariya (Dec 12, 17) |
| Blocks | Joe Alexander | Hapoel Holon | 6 | Hapoel Jerusalem (Mar 24, 18) |
| Three Pointers | Jerome Dyson | Hapoel Jerusalem | 8 | Maccabi Rishon LeZion (Jan 15, 18) |
Source: RealGM

## Awards
### Yearly awards
#### Regular season MVP

| Pos. | Player | Team |
| SG | Sek Henry | Maccabi Ashdod |
Source: basket.co.il

#### Finals MVP

| Pos. | Player | Team |
| C | Alex Tyus | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
Source: basket.co.il

#### All-Israeli League Teams

| First Team | First Team | Second Team | Second Team |
| Player | Team | Player | Team |
| Jerome Dyson | Hapoel Jerusalem | John DiBartolomeo | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
| Sek Henry | Maccabi Ashdod | Joaquin Szuchman | Hapoel Gilboa Galil |
| Amit Simhon | Hapoel Eilat | Jordan Loyd | Hapoel Eilat |
| Joe Alexander | Hapoel Holon | Tomer Ginat | Hapoel Tel Aviv |
| Zach LeDay | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | Alex Tyus | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
Source: basket.co.il

#### Coach of the Year

| Coach | Team |
| Dan Shamir | Hapoel Holon |
Source: basket.co.il

#### Quarterfinals MVP

| Pos. | Player | Team |
| PG | Jeremy Pargo | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
Source: basket.co.il

#### Best Defender

| Pos. | Player | Team |
| SG | Joaquin Szuchman | Hapoel Gilboa Galil |
Source: basket.co.il

#### Most Improved Player

| Pos. | Player | Team |
| PF | Nimrod Levi | Maccabi Ashdod |
Source: basket.co.il

#### Sixth Man of the Year

| Pos. | Player | Team |
| SG | Adrian Banks | Hapoel Tel Aviv |
Source: basket.co.il

#### Rising Star

| Pos. | Player | Team |
| SG | Yovel Zoosman | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
Source: basket.co.il

### Monthly Awards
#### Player of the Month

| Month | Rounds | Player | Team | EFF |
| October | 1–4 | Alex Young | Ironi Nahariya | 21.0 |
| November | 5–7 | Glen Rice Jr. (1/2) | Hapoel Holon | 28.0 |
| December | 8–10 | Zach LeDay (1/2) | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 30.7 |
| January | 11–15 | Sek Henry | Maccabi Ashdod | 25.8 |
| February | 16–17 | Glen Rice Jr. (2/2) | Hapoel Holon | 44.0 |
| March | 18–21 | Jeff Adrien | Bnei Herzliya | 33.0 |
| April | 22–27 | Zach LeDay (2/2) | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 27.8 |

#### Israeli Player of the Month

| Month | Rounds | Player | Team | EFF |
| October | 1–4 | Tomer Ginat (1/2) | Hapoel Tel Aviv | 16.3 |
| November | 5–7 | Joe Alexander | Hapoel Holon | 23.3 |
| December | 8–10 | Joaquin Szuchman | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 16.6 |
| January | 11–15 | Nimrod Levi | Maccabi Ashdod | 16.4 |
| February | 16–17 | Guy Pnini | Hapoel Holon | 9.3 |
| March | 18–21 | Amit Simhon | Hapoel Eilat | 14.8 |
| April | 22–27 | Tomer Ginat (2/2) | Hapoel Tel Aviv | 18.5 |

#### Coach of the Month

| Month | Rounds | Coach | Team | W-L |
| October | 1–4 | Eric Alfasi | Ironi Nahariya | 3–1 |
| November | 5–7 | Dan Shamir (1/2) | Hapoel Holon | 3–0 |
| December | 8–10 | Ariel Beit-Halahmy (1/2) | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 3–0 |
| January | 11–15 | Brad Greenberg | Maccabi Ashdod | 5–0 |
| February | 16–17 | Dan Shamir (2/2) | Hapoel Holon | 2–0 |
| March | 18–21 | Nadav Zilberstein | Ironi Nes Ziona | 3–1 |
| April | 22–27 | Ariel Beit-Halahmy (2/2) | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 6–0 |

### MVP of the Round

| Round | Player | Team | EFF |
| October |||||
| 1 | Tomer Ginat | Hapoel Tel Aviv | 18 |
| 2 | Alex Young | Ironi Nahariya | 22 |
| 3 | Brandon Bowman | Maccabi Haifa | 26 |
| 4 | David Laury | Maccabi Ashdod | 32 |
| 4 | Sek Henry | Maccabi Ashdod | 26 |
| November |||||
| 5 | Tyler Stone | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 40 |
| 6 | J'Covan Brown (1/2) | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 42 |
| 7 | Glen Rice Jr. (1/4) | Hapoel Holon | 43 |
| December |||||
| 8 | Tony Gaffney | Hapoel Tel Aviv | 36 |
| 9 | Zach LeDay | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 33 |
| 10 | Jerome Dyson (1/3) | Hapoel Jerusalem | 29 |
| January |||||
| 11 | Jordan Loyd | Hapoel Eilat | 43 |
| 12 | Taurean Green | Bnei Herzliya | 31 |
| 13 | Jerome Dyson (2/3) | Hapoel Jerusalem | 27 |
| 14 | D'Angelo Harrison (1/2) | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 41 |
| 15 | Murphy Holloway (1/2) | Maccabi Rishon LeZion | 35 |
| February |||||
| 16 | Glen Rice Jr. (2/4) | Hapoel Holon | 42 |
| 17 | Glen Rice Jr. (3/4) | Hapoel Holon | 46 |
| March |||||
| 18 | Khalif Wyatt | Ironi Nes Ziona | 26 |
| 19 | Glen Rice Jr. (4/4) | Hapoel Holon | 46 |
| 20 | Tu Holloway | Hapoel Holon | 28 |
| 21 | Oz Blayzer | Maccabi Haifa | 34 |
| April |||||
| 22 | Joaquin Szuchman | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 24 |
| 23 | J'Covan Brown (2/2) | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 38 |
| 24 | Murphy Holloway (2/2) | Maccabi Rishon LeZion | 34 |
| 25 | Amit Simhon | Hapoel Eilat | 24 |
| 26 | Jerome Dyson (3/3) | Hapoel Jerusalem | 21 |
| May |||||
| 27 | D'Angelo Harrison (2/2) | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 39 |
| 28 | Joe Alexander | Hapoel Holon | 41 |
| 29 | Cameron Long | Maccabi Ashdod | 28 |
| 30 | Lior Eliyahu | Hapoel Jerusalem | 26 |
| 31 | Shawn Dawson | Bnei Herzliya | 28 |
| 32 | Jeremy Pargo | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 30 |
| 33 | Richard Howell | Hapoel Jerusalem | 25 |

## Average attendances

Included playoffs games.
| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Average | Change |
| 1 | Hapoel Jerusalem | 105,763 | 10,802 | 3,774 | 5,876 | −9.2%$^†$ |
| 2 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 86,650 | 8,000 | 2,205 | 4,814 | −4.2%$^†$ |
| 3 | Hapoel Holon | 64,000 | 5,100 | 2,500 | 3,556 | +8.9%$^†$ |
| 4 | Hapoel Tel Aviv | 51,422 | 3,536 | 900 | 2,857 | −3.6%$^†$ |
| 5 | Maccabi Haifa | 32,009 | 3,487 | 500 | 2,001 | −4.3%$^†$ |
| 6 | Ironi Nahariya | 31,350 | 2,500 | 1,600 | 1,959 | +2.9%$^†$ |
| 7 | Maccabi Rishon LeZion | 24,500 | 2,200 | 600 | 1,531 | −15.1%$^†$ |
| 8 | Hapoel Gilboa Galil | 22,300 | 2,100 | 850 | 1,312 | +23.2%$^†$ |
| 9 | Bnei Herzliya | 18,100 | 1,400 | 700 | 1,131 | −4.0%$^†$ |
| 10 | Ironi Nes Ziona | 19,650 | 1,300 | 650 | 1,092 | −7.1%$^†$ |
| 11 | Hapoel Eilat | 16,400 | 1,300 | 550 | 965 | −10.1%$^†$ |
| 12 | Maccabi Ashdod | 16,604 | 2,000 | 500 | 922 | +6.5%$^†$ |
| | League total | 488,748 | 10,802 | 500 | 2,373 | −7.9%$^†$ |
Updated to games played on 1 June 2018 Source: Israeli Basketball Super League