Valencia Basket seeks to stop Hapoel at the Roig Arena

Valencia Basket faces a significant matchup this Thursday against Hapoel Tel Aviv, an Israeli team that represents one of the biggest challenges in this European start. The Tarongers arrive undefeated with three consecutive victories, but they encounter an opponent that has shown it possesses top-level offensive resources. The EuroLeague proposes a clash between two ambitious projects, although the Roig Arena will be filled with a sense of recent history.

A Hapoel full of offensive talent

The Israeli team is not a rival that can be reduced to a single name. Vasilije Micic is the orchestrator, but focusing solely on the Serbian would be a tactical mistake with serious consequences. Hapoel Tel Aviv has Elijah Bryant, Zach LeDay, Bruno Caboclo, Dan Oturu, and Antonio Blakeney, players capable of generating points from multiple registers and positions. The recent victory against Real Madrid illustrates this destructive capacity well: they scored 63 points before halftime and won 102-98. Bryant recorded 22 points, 13 rebounds, and seven assists, while Caboclo opened spaces from the perimeter with his outside shooting, and Micic managed the offensive pace with precision.

This offensive versatility represents precisely one of the biggest dangers for Valencia at the Roig Arena. The Israeli team has too many ball handlers to allow the Taronger defense to work comfortably from the pick and roll, and too many shooters for defensive help to be effective without the risk of punishment from the perimeter.

Valencia's defensive vulnerabilities under scrutiny

Valencia Basket has maintained an impeccable European start, but their defensive deficiencies in the first quarters have left alarming warnings. Against ASVEL, they conceded 61 points before halftime and had to come back from an 18-point deficit. Against a Hapoel with such offensive capacity, conceding a similar defensive start could prove much costlier and harder to correct on the fly. The key will be in the pace and defensive aggression from the first minute.

TJ Shorts averages 18.3 points and six assists in the EuroLeague, and his ability to attack before the opposing defense is organized may force Micic to also work on defense, distributing defensive energy that would otherwise be available to orchestrate the Israeli attack. With Mirotic opening spaces on the perimeter and Sako driving to the basket, Valencia has the tools needed to pose to Hapoel the same question they will receive at their own basket.

The debate over TJ Shorts' impact

Since his first games in the EuroLeague, a recurring debate has emerged about how much TJ Shorts can change Valencia's offense. His processing speed and ability to generate transitional numerical advantages through fast breaks represent a weapon that the team needs to activate especially against sophisticated defenses like Hapoel’s.

The weight of history: from Samokov to Roig Arena

The competitive relationship between the two clubs exploded in March 2025, when they faced off for a spot in the EuroCup final. Valencia won the first game, but Hapoel responded in Bulgaria and forced a third match at the Fonteta. That second game in Samokov radically changed the tone of the series. Valencia officially reported insults, threats, and situations where they felt the physical integrity of their members was endangered upon exiting the Samokov Arena.

The third duel was even more tension-filled. Hapoel won 92-94 after hitting nine three-pointers in the last quarter, eliminating the Tarongers from the competition. After the game, new moments of tension occurred when several Israeli players celebrated their qualification alongside their fans. These events caused subsequent Valencia-Hapoel encounters to also be marked by security concerns.

In October 2025, when Hapoel visited the newly opened Roig Arena, the image was hard to forget: the match was played behind closed doors. The Israelis won again, this time 93-100, with Micic scoring 24 points. Even before that decisive third EuroCup game, the Israeli team had fueled the rivalry by asserting that they felt superior to Valencia throughout the series. That narrative has remained latent ever since.

Current context: two projects seeking validation

This time the scenario is different. Valencia arrives undefeated in the EuroLeague, while Hapoel boasts two consecutive victories after starting with a loss against Bayern. Thursday will serve to measure two projects with clear aspirations in the continental competition, but at the Roig Arena, something more will linger in the air: Hapoel returns to the stage where they have already left too many memories in a short time, and the Tarongers will have the opportunity to close an unresolved chapter.

Defense will be the decisive factor. If Valencia manages to maintain defensive intensity from the first minute and does not allow Hapoel to enjoy comfortable spaces for its multiple creators, the Taronger offensive rhythm could overwhelm the Israelis. Conversely, if the Tarongers show those vulnerabilities at the starts again, Hapoel has more than enough resources to exploit them ruthlessly.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Valencia Basket busca frenar al Hapoel en el Roig Arena