By John Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
It’s been a crazy week for Hapoel Jerusalem, which got the win in Hamburg for the opening round of BKT EuroCup and then got on a plane for New York.
The team is already in the US, preparing for a friendly game against the Brooklyn Nets, and Jared Harper talked to Eurohoops about this unique start to the season and the goals of his team.
With him being last season’s BKT EuroCup MVP and Hapoel being a contender, the end goal is obvious: Winning the trophy and playing in the EuroLeague next season.
How important a boost is it to beat Maccabi twice, in the SuperCup and League Cup?
“I think it was good for our confidence as a team just to see where we were going into the regular season, but at the same time, it kind of didn’t really mean too much because it was just preseason, so being able to get out and start the regular season the right way”.
How can any early momentum be affected by the upcoming trip to face the Brooklyn Nets in the US?
“I think the trip to New York is kind of cool for us as a team, just to be able to play against the NBA team. It’s just always a cool experience. Of course, it has its difficulties with traveling. across the world and having to travel back for a Eurocup game, but I think we’re a good enough, a mature enough team to be able to handle, you know, a little bit of adversity that comes along with that”.
Do you feel that you represent the whole EuroCup in the game against an NBA team? Is it one more proof that on the court, Europe and the NBA are getting closer?
“During the game, yes, I think we represent the Euro Cup. I think we also kind of represent all of Europe. But I don’t think our intentions are to be like, hey, we’re better than an NBA team, or we feel like we can be better than an NBA team. We’re coming to continue to improve as a team, continue to get better. And with getting better, if we put ourselves in a position to win… Of course, we’re gonna try to win the game, but I think we have bigger goals”.
Even though it’s a prep game, do you have an extra motivation because you play against an NBA team?
“This year it’s more than just this single game, so being able to continue to get better every time we step into a practice, every time we step onto the court together, to be able to achieve those goals. And then, personally, I don’t necessarily have extra motivation playing against the NBA team, I was able to spend three years playing in the US, whether it’s an NBA or the G League, so I think it will be a bigger experience for people that haven’t played against the NBA team or played against the NBA court, but I’m just using it as a way towards getting better, individually, getting better as a team as we try to make our run in Europe of the season”.
After winning MVP last season, the next step would be winning the EuroCup and qualifying for the EuroLeague? That’s the clear goal?
“After winning MVP last season, of course, my goal would be to win the EuroCup and then make it back to the Euroleague. I think coming back to Harper Jerusalem this season, the future goal was for the team to play in the EuroLeague. So I know that’s the goal of mine, and that’s the goal of everybody in my team, the staff, front office, and ownership. I know everybody wants to be able to participate in the Euroleague, so I’m looking forward to having a great season”.
Have you had a chance to look at the competition? Which teams do you consider your main opponents?
“Yes, I kind of paid attention to the other teams that are playing in Eurocup. I think everybody serves as a rival in the competition. I don’t think we as a team are going to overlook any opponent. Of course, we understand what the end goal is, but we also understand what the process is to get towards the end goal. So we have to take one game at a time, make sure we’re doing the things that we can do to get better as a team and as we’re able to do those things, then we’ll put ourselves in position to win games and then we’ll put ourselves in position to compete in the playoffs and then eventually be able to win a championship. But I think it’s also just a process of just one game at a time, not trying to get too far ahead of ourselves, not necessarily living in the past or living in the future, but just being in the present”.
What has Hapoel improved this past summer to succeed?
“I think overall as a team, we’ve improved. Specifically, I think we’ve got a lot of different weapons that we can use offensively, but we also have everybody that’s willing to, you know, chip in on the defensive end. I feel like last year we lost some players that were more, I guess, defensive-minded. This year, we have a lot of weapons offensively, but I think in the first game of the season and the preseason, we’ve learned to be a cohesive unit on the defensive end. And we’ve learned to play together defensively, and we can use that to our advantage”.
What gives you motivation on a personal level?
“The only motivation I need is to be able to compete for championships. We were able to get to the last game of the Israeli League championship, even though it wasn’t declared a winner. I think that was good for our confidence as a team, knowing that we can compete at the highest level. This will be our second year of playing in the EuroCup, so I think we have a lot of experience from this level, some Euroleague players in the roster, and then some more experience from people who were here last year. So just being able to build off the confidence that we got from last year, build off the chemistry that we had last year, and to be able to take that to our goals of winning championships”.
Can you share positives and negatives from the two years with Valencia in comparison to the ongoing stint at Hapoel?
“I mean, I think there were a lot of positives, more positives than negatives. I would say, in Valencia, I tried to use everything as a learning experience and learn from everything. I learned a lot during my time at Valencia, with that being my first time overseas, first time playing in your league, so first time playing in the ACB, so it was a lot of learning. And I was able to use that experience from learning and coming into this situation in Jerusalem, I think it definitely prepared me for this situation. Of course, I have a bigger role and more responsibilities here in Jerusalem, but the situation in Valencia definitely helped me be in this situation”.
Valencia is back in the EuroLeague. What is Hapoel missing to get there?
“Yes, Valencia is back in EuroLeague. And what we have to do to get there, we just have to take one game at a time like I kind of said, and just through the process continue to get better and better, help put ourselves in positions to win games, and I feel like we have a lot of different people that can contribute with a team. It can be a different person every night that leads the team, I feel like my team, my job is just to lead the team as a point guard and a person who has experience and continue to get better as a team, continue to play the right way, and have it so that we were able to play the right way throughout the whole season. Hopefully, we will stay healthy, and with that I think we’ll have a good chance to make history and be a team to move in the EuroLeague”.