Local hoopsters launch strike against foreign stars

After Saturday night’s basketball games were cancelled due to players’ protests against foreign talent in the league, many were hoping for a quick resolution to the situation. Now it appears that the end of a debilitating and unexpected strike may not arrive so quickly.

Ligat Ha’Al — Israel’s 12-team premier league — has for many years been a haven for athletes from around the world, particularly American players either unable to make it in the NBA or past their prime.

It has also long been a source of discontent for local players, who have complained that the number of talented foreign players in the league takes away from their own playing time.

As of 2011, after years of Israeli teams importing foreign players, the rules were changed to allow only four non-Israelis per team. Yet many foreign players have circumvented the regulations by officially immigrating, so that they may be considered local players.

Today, more than one-third of the league’s players are American-born.

Maccabi Tel Aviv coach David Blatt, who himself was born in America, expressed anger and frustration over the cancellations. While all the players on his team showed up to play Bnei Herzliya, the game was cancelled when Herzliya’s Israeli players stayed away.

Describing the situation as “Armageddon,” Blatt said that the strike is “a serious blow to Israeli professional basketball.”

He was also disappointed over the missed game, which, he believes, the team needed to prepare for an upcoming Euroleague game against the powerhouse Barcelona team.

“I don’t judge anyone,” Blatt said. “But a strike in the middle of the season? That only happens here.”

American-born Maccabi player Shawn James said that, unlike the Israeli players, the foreign players are not aware of what is going on. He said that he and others came to the stadium on Saturday night, thinking there would be a game, and he described the cancellation as “disappointing.”

Todd Warnick, the league’s game commissioner who declared the postponement of the game, was also unhappy with the situation. “I have been on the referee committee for 33 years,” he said. “I have never done this before. I did not believe it would come to this.”

League officials said on Saturday night that they had done everything to enable the evening’s games to take place as scheduled, and that the entire professional staff was present at every game — including referees, statisticians, league officials and medical personnel.

As a result of the strike, the management announced that the following round of games — scheduled for Wednesday, April 3 — would also be cancelled. On Tuesday the board of directors, led by chairman Shmuel Frankel, will decide on the next steps to be taken by the league.

On Friday afternoon, 54 players in the premier league, along with several lower-tier league players, gathered at the Labor Federation building in Tel Aviv to hear the latest on the strike and to receive legal advice.

Attorney Dafna Shmuelevich told the players that their strike is legal, and that the teams are prohibited from punishing the players for taking part in it. Some teams have warned that players who do not show up for games will receive a 25% pay cut for the month. Maccabi Haifa and Maccabi Rishon Lezion have threatened legal action and cancellation of contracts for players who go ahead with the strike.

Shmuelevich said that she will sue, in the Labor Court, any team that follows through on those threats.

Minister of Culture and Sports Limor Livnat said on Saturday night that “the Israeli league cannot exist with Israeli players, so there is a real need to improve their status.” Livnat added that she believes the situation can be quickly resolved and that games can be resumed.

Joel Moss contributed to this report.