George Hinas, general manager of Hapoel Tel Aviv, spoke to Basketball Sphere about how he decided to join the Israeli club, how Dimitris Itoudis was hired, and addressed some of the most talked-about topics — Vasilije Micic, Russell Westbrook, and the potential entry into the ABA League.
George Hinas is a well-known name in European basketball. As the key figure at AEK, he won the FIBA Champions League and signed players like Kevin Punter, Keith Langford, Mindaugas Kuzminskas, Ben McLemore, and many other stars. He simply knows how to work with big names, which made the decision to join Hapoel Tel Aviv a year ago a natural progression.
What followed was a major rise. Investments don’t always guarantee results, but in this case, the Israeli club managed to achieve its set goal — to win the EuroCup and thus qualify for the EuroLeague, in a field of increasingly ambitious competitors. Of course, it all happened step by step, even though it was within a single season. There were ups and downs, and extremely challenging situations.
“The transition was very easy because I came from a club that also has high standards. AEK, like Hapoel Tel Aviv, is very competitive, has a large fan base, and is under a lot of pressure,” George Hinas told Basketball Sphere.
Claim Now Why did he come to Hapoel Tel Aviv?
He couldn’t pass up the opportunity — not only did he accept it, but he made the most of it. A few weeks ago, he signed a new contract through the 2027/28 season.
“I love working under pressure, and that’s something I wanted. I had offers from clubs in other countries, but my goal was to go somewhere with ambition and expectations to win titles. After talking to president Ofer Yannay, I saw how ambitious he is, what his vision is, and what kind of team he wants.
Of course, you can’t predict how the season will go — many factors play a role — but the plan was to build a quality team. The toughest part was not being able to play our EuroCup home games in Tel Aviv. We practically lived on a plane — that was our home. We traveled a lot. We hosted in Samokov, and even though it was a different country, we started to feel at home there. That’s why we managed to win the EuroCup — it’s something unforgettable.”
The turning point turned out to be the arrival of coach Dimitris Itoudis, which came after serious turbulence. Probably the best player on the team was on the verge of leaving, went to the U.S., and it was said he had agreed to terms with another team.
“It was a tough period with Johnathan Motley. We’re really grateful to coach Stefanos Dedas for how he handled everything — things could have fallen apart then. Dedas never used the situation as an excuse. He kept the team together,” said George Hinas.
The meticulous Itoudis and six or seven pages of notes at the first meeting
He then turned to the crucial detail — his very interesting discussions with the former Fenerbahce and CSKA coach.
“I met with Itoudis in Athens, and it was a tough situation because he was already in talks with two EuroLeague teams. Both of those teams later changed coaches, so he could’ve ended up there. It wasn’t easy to get his attention. I explained the entire project to him. He understood that our goal was to play in the EuroLeague and saw that we were building something important. We talked a lot. He was interested in many details.
I remember he took notes on six or seven pages during our first meeting — we talked for three hours. He wrote down almost everything. That’s his level. That’s what sets him apart. Every day is a new challenge for him. He doesn’t care about the past — only the future, how to improve and be better. He raised the club to his level. We started operating like a EuroLeague club, even though we were in the EuroCup. When he arrived, we knew he would lead us to success.”
The general manager also explained what makes Hapoel Tel Aviv special to many.
“People here are hungry for success. For example, Motley came from the EuroLeague. His advantage is that he wants to win every day — he’s hungry. From day one, Antonio Blakeney also told me he wants to win. The most important criterion for signings was to bring in players who would fit on the court chemistry-wise but also be hungry and motivated. Over the years, one thing is clear — no matter the talent, level, or name, if someone lacks motivation, you won’t win, and your season won’t be successful.”
About market demands, home court, and the ABA League.
Due to the war situation in Israel, it seems that Hapoel Tel Aviv must overpay players to sign them.
“It’s not easy to convince them. We won’t play EuroLeague games in Israel, but we have other advantages. There’s coach Itoudis, Mr. Yannay is a very ambitious owner and will do whatever it takes to win. The fact is we’re building a competitive roster and we don’t want to be just another EuroLeague team. We’re trying to establish ourselves in the EuroLeague, and that will take time. There are bigger teams with bigger budgets. But I’m confident we’ll have a very competitive team.”
It’s still unknown where Hapoel Tel Aviv will host EuroLeague opponents.
“We’re visiting some locations and will know more next week.”
They are also negotiating with the ABA League, a competition the Israeli club is considering joining. A decision is expected soon.
“It’s a very interesting competition. There are talks about expansion and a new format. Given everything happening in Tel Aviv right now, playing in the ABA League is a real alternative — not only due to the circumstances but also because the level of the competition is rising every year. It’s very competitive. Partizan, Crvena Zvezda, Buducnost, Cedevita Olimpija, and Dubai are very good teams. We’re talking with the league’s management. We don’t know how it will end, but there is definitely mutual interest.”
“It’s not true that Vasilije Micic rejected us because of the war”
A hot topic in recent months has been the connection between Vasilije Micic and Hapoel Tel Aviv, which neither the player nor the club has denied. Recently, reports suggested the Serbian guard turned down the EuroLeague newcomer due to the war, which George Hinas denied.
“He’s a great player, a EuroLeague legend, and one of the best ever. We spoke with him in late March and early April. We didn’t reach an agreement then, but we stayed in touch with him and his agent. What the Spanish media reported — that he rejected us because of the war — isn’t true. We continued talking. Mr. Yannay even met with him in Abu Dhabi. Nothing is concrete yet. He’s one of the players we’re interested in, but so are other clubs. That’s how the offseason works — he talks to many clubs, and we talk to many players. His case is not closed. Not at all.”
Given Ofer Yannay’s ambition, many high-profile names have been linked to Hapoel Tel Aviv. One of them is Russell Westbrook, with reports suggesting the club was ready to offer a historic contract.
“That’s 100% fake news. There were numbers mentioned — $50 million per year — which is crazy. I get that Hapoel Tel Aviv draws attention because we’re spending money. I counted 37 players who were linked with us. It’s good we’ll have three rosters, because when you have 37 players, it makes things easier (laughs). To be serious — it’s not true. There was no interest, and no one approached him.”
George Hinas on the Caboclo case, the salary cap, and the NBA Europe
Hapoel Tel Aviv will likely keep the core of its team for next season, including Bruno Caboclo. His message to fans caused confusion and was interpreted by many as a farewell.
“He commented that it wasn’t a farewell message, just a thank-you note. The same happened with Tomer Ginat and Oz Blayzer — it’s just something players do. Caboclo has a contract with us and will stay next season.”
Even though Hapoel Tel Aviv has high ambitions and wants to invest heavily in the team, it will have to adapt to the EuroLeague’s new financial regulations and the salary cap — something prominent agent Misko Raznatović called “suicidal” for European basketball.
“I understand the league needs rules to ensure that some conditions are respected and that the gap between big and small teams doesn’t keep growing. On the other hand, I agree with Raznatovic. We need to think about the product. Basketball as a product is attracting a lot of attention right now — arenas are full, TV rights are growing… To make it even better, we need to bring in bigger names and better players. That means higher salaries. I understand the idea of a salary cap, but you can’t apply it in Europe the same way as in the U.S. — we’re talking about different countries, with different tax systems. Regardless, we’ll have to respect it.”
It’s clear that European basketball is changing. With its expansion, the EuroLeague has added two strong teams — Dubai and Valencia — and rejected the first wave of NBA Europe, which Hinas believes will soon establish its own competition.
“It will definitely happen — I believe in 2027. Meetings have already taken place in Geneva with the EuroLeague management. The NBA wants to approach football clubs like Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, as well as Ajax, Frankfurt, Juventus, Marseille… They want to create significant basketball hubs — it’s a very ambitious plan. At the same time, the EuroLeague has grown significantly, bringing together most of European basketball. The current expansion, and future ones as well, are making the EuroLeague even bigger. We’ll see how the meetings between the two sides go, but at this moment, I don’t see how the EuroLeague and NBA could collaborate. These are two different paths, two different plans.”
“Punter? Maybe most people would have gone with an NBA name at that moment”
George Hinas also commented on the situation at AEK, the club where he left a strong legacy. Even after his departure, the organization has continued to operate successfully.
“A great season, considering that in Greece, you can’t really finish higher than third place because of Panathinaikos and Olympiacos. Of course, the team exceeded expectations in the FIBA Champions League — not just by organizing the Final Four, but getting there in the first place is no easy feat. I hope next season will be at the same level.”
A few years ago, the Greek executive played a key role in bringing Kevin Punter to AEK, which proved to be Punter’s first major step toward breaking out on the European scene.
“It was a very unique moment. We were in a tough situation — early February — looking for a shooting guard, and we had the Greek Cup Final against Olympiacos coming up in seven days. We weren’t in a good spot in the FIBA Champions League either. We were choosing between Jordan Crawford and Punter. When I spoke with Kevin, I realized he was on the rise. I talked to Antwerp and Lavrio and got confirmation that he was a quality person, a great guy, and a hard worker.
For me, motivation is everything, and he had the motivation to prove he was one of the best players in Europe and that he could succeed with AEK. I spoke with the owner and coach Dragan Sakota. Maybe most people would have gone with an NBA name at that moment, but we chose Kevin. Things turned out positively for both sides. He deserved everything that happened in his career afterward,” concluded George Hinas to Basketball Sphere.
