Tamir Blatt, excluded from Hapoel despite his three-year contract
Tamir Blatt will not participate in Hapoel IBI Tel Aviv's preseason in Sofia. According to the Israeli outlet Ynet, the 29-year-old point guard has been left out of coach Dimitris Itoudis' plans, who is looking to loan him to another European team for the 2026-27 season.
The Hapoel IBI Tel Aviv is facing an uncomfortable situation at the beginning of its preparation. While the team starts its training in the Bulgarian capital, the absence of Tamir Blatt marks a turning point in the structure of the Israeli team. As reported on Tuesday by the Ynet media, the newly added point guard will not join his teammates in preseason workouts, raising questions about the immediate future of the squad.
The decision of the coaching staff led by Dimitris Itoudis is surprising considering that Blatt signed a three-year contract with the Tel Aviv club just weeks ago. The mismatch between the vision of the Greek coach and the club's expectations in incorporating the 29-year-old guard reflects a strategic disconnect that has forced the management to seek alternative solutions. The intention is to find a European club to take over the contract during the upcoming 2026-27 season, indicating a certain urgency to resolve the situation.
A EuroLeague veteran with no place in the plans
Blatt has a solid track record in the top European competition. With 162 games played in the EuroLeague, the guard has made his mark on renowned teams like ALBA Berlin and Maccabi Playtika/Rapyd Tel Aviv, his local rival. During the 2025-26 season, he won his second MVP of the Round award, highlighting his competitive ability in elite European basketball.
Despite this background, being excluded from preseason training puts the player in an uncomfortable position. It's not common for a guard with his experience and accolades to be sidelined by a team to which he was recently contractually bound. This situation raises doubts about the technical or personal reasons behind Itoudis' decision, although public information does not detail the specific motives for the disconnection.
The key: a long-term loan strategy
The Hapoel management has opted for a long-term strategy to resolve the conflict. Instead of seeking an immediate exit or termination, the club prefers to find a European destination willing to take on the player's contract. This approach suggests that the Israeli club is willing to invest time in finding the right team, prioritizing financial stability over an abrupt rupture.
This discrepancy between Itoudis' technical project and Blatt's signing raises questions about how this situation arose. The son of the legendary coach David Blatt had been introduced as a key piece to strengthen the team's perimeter, yet the reality of the training sessions has shown that he doesn't fit into the Greek coach's tactical schemes.
International commitments and an uncertain future
While his future in club basketball is being resolved, Blatt will have to focus on his duties with the Israeli national team. At the end of August, he is expected to rejoin the national squad in Riga to participate in the FIBA World Cup 2027 qualifiers. Israel enters these qualifying rounds with a 2-4 record in Group K, needing to improve its results to advance to the second and final phase of the European rounds.
In this phase, Israel will face Poland and Latvia, opponents presenting different challenges. Blatt's participation in these games could serve as a showcase to attract the interest of other European clubs, especially if he demonstrates his competitive level on the international stage. The EuroLeague has teams attentive to the movements of experienced players seeking new challenges.
Blatt's absence from Hapoel's preseason marks the beginning of uncertainty that could extend for several months. The Israeli club remains hopeful to find a European team to take on his services before the regular season starts, while the guard must manage a situation that, though uncomfortable, still offers opportunities within the continental basketball landscape. His performance with the Israeli team in the upcoming weeks could be decisive in defining his next destination in European professional basketball.
This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Tamir Blatt, excluido del Hapoel pese a su contrato de tres años
