The big news in Israeli hoops this week was that Maccabi Tel Aviv's Yovel Zoosman declared for the NBA Draft and will look to be the first Israeli from the yellow-and-blue since Omri Casspi to be selected in the two-round draft on June 20. So far this season, Zoosman is averaging 7.8 points in roughly 26 minutes a game while pulling down 3.7 rebounds and dishing out 2.4 assists in Israeli league action. His numbers significantly increased across the board from the previous season, when he played about 13 minutes and scored only 3.9 points a game. In the Euroleague, the 20-year-old swingman played in all 30 regular season games averaging about 14 minutes and scoring three points per game. Zoosman captured the Under-20 European Championship with Israel this past summer and was named the tournament MVP along with averaging 14.4 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.3 steals per game. The Kfar Saba native's skills both on and off of the basketball court are unquestionable and he is a person of the highest caliber who will work as hard as he has to in order to succeed. His desire and drive are what make him that special player and person. Is there really any risk for Zoosman to declare for the draft? Not really. The worst that happens is that he either doesn't get selected or he is picked late in the second round and returns to Israel to play while being monitored by the NBA team that drafted him.
