"Oded Kattash"

    “Mother who raised me, brought me up, made me a brave man”...

These are the lyrics of a traditional Israeli song referring to a child's lifelong relationship with the person who brought them into the world and stood by their side, watching them spread their wings and stand on their own two feet. A mother is always there for her own flesh and blood, even if they hurt her. Even if they deprive her of the Champions Cup...

On April 20, 2000, at the dawn of the new millennium, history was being written on the hardwood of Pylaia. Panathinaikos was preparing for the great battle against Maccabi, with the most glittering trophy in European basketball at stake. At that very moment, one of the most vital cogs in Obradović's machine was fighting an internal battle with his emotions. On one side was the team of his life, whose fans idolized him simply for who he was. On the other was the team with which he was contesting the biggest title of his career. No one would have wanted to be in Oded Kattash's shoes that night. Today, he celebrates his 52nd birthday.

In 1995, the 21-year-old Oded donned the number 10 jersey of Israel's most historic team, which had, alas, entered a period of decline. Although it remained the perennial champion (with the exception of Hapoel Galil Elyon in 1993), and its roster continued to feature the best domestic players and big-name foreigners such as NBA veteran Tom Chambers, it had become a poor relation in Europe due to the rise of Greek, Spanish and French teams.

By Antreas Tsemperlidis

 Before the game, he was surely replaying every moment he had experienced with Israel's flagship team, which had brought him to this final. Moments coloured in the yellow of Maccabi Tel Aviv, the colour that symbolizes honour and loyalty in his homeland. Because even though he wore the green of Panathinaikos, in his heart he had always remained “tzahob” (yellow).

Kattash's lifelong relationship with Maccabi seemed predestined for the kid who joined the team's youth academy in 1983, at the age of nine. His home was just a few hundred metres from Yad Eliyahu, making the choice an easy one for the young boy. Equally easy, however, was the job of the coaches, who recognized the immense talent that had landed in their hands and worked with him daily.

A tall guard, quick in both thought and execution and an exceptional shooter, he could read an opponent's defence and make the right decision. Calls to the youth national teams soon followed, as did his debut in the top tier—not in Maccabi's yellow, however, but in the purple of Maccabi Ramat Gan. And what a debut it was: 24 points and 10 assists. After another loan spell at Hapoel Galil Elyon, where he established himself as one of the league's best young players, the big moment had arrived for Kattash.

The opportunity came when Panathinaikos's new coach, Željko Obradović, chose him as a key piece of a roster built for the sole purpose of conquering the European summit. Kattash signed a two-year contract worth $1.3 million per season and travelled to Rogla, Slovenia, to prepare for the season and play under the guidance of Europe's top coach. From the outset, the Greens were among the heavy favourites to secure one of the places at the Thessaloniki Final Four, and they duly kept their appointment.

They dispatched Efes Pilsen relatively easily in the semi-final, and waiting for them in the final was Maccabi, who had also comfortably overcome Barcelona. An influx of Israeli fans, arriving in the middle of Passover, combined with the presence of the Shamrock's supporters, promised a fiery final, at least in the stands.

Without a doubt, the man wearing number 14 on his green jersey was in the most difficult position of all the participants. The professional and the fan inside him were at war, but in the end, he pulled the executioner's mask over his face and told Obradović before the game,

“Coach, I didn't play well in the semi-final, but we're not losing the final. I know Maccabi well, and they don't have anyone who can guard me.”

“Hell on Earth,” Yad Eliyahu remained a difficult arena for any opponent to pass through, but it was not always full, and that alone was not enough for Maccabi to relive the glorious days of the 1980s and qualify for a Final Four. Within this competitive environment, our hero quickly stood out, and the keys were gradually handed over to him, turning him into the general on the court. He was only 22 years old and already the leader of his beloved team.

The future lay ahead of him and looked bright. He had also attracted the attention of NBA teams, with the Knicks discreetly monitoring his progress and his spectacular performances at EuroBasket 1997 in Girona, where he finished as the tournament's top scorer and helped his team secure ninth place. After another incredible season with Maccabi, he travelled to New York in the summer of 1998 to sign a contract with the Knicks, poised to become the first Israeli-born player to play in the NBA.

But misfortune struck for the first time when he ran into the NBA lockout. Lacking the patience to wait and unwilling to live in uncertainty, he returned to Maccabi. However, he felt constrained, knowing he had reached his ceiling in Israel and that, if he wanted to develop further, he had to leave the safety of the yellow embrace.

Prophecies are one of the defining pillars of the Jewish faith, and Oded, a devout Israeli, made sure his words came true. Perhaps he had even read some of them the previous night at the synagogue he had visited with his compatriots to celebrate Passover. And just as the biblical Moses led the Jews across the desert thousands of years ago in search of the Promised Land, the modern-day Moses “parted” Maccabi's “Red Sea,” scoring 17 points to lead his people through. The decisive moment was the three-pointer that made it 63–57, driving the final nail into the coffin of the yellow team's dreams.

With the final whistle, pandemonium broke out at the Pylaia arena. Panathinaikos fans were celebrating, Maccabi's supporters looked on in disappointment, and suddenly, everyone began to idolize a stunned Kattash, who sobbed uncontrollably in his mother's arms. The drama continued at the airport, where Israeli fans sang the anthem dedicated to their own boy, who had always been one of them.

They hoisted Kattash onto their shoulders and paraded him like a king—their own King David (his full name is David Oded Kattash). He was 26 years old, at the peak of his career, a champion of Europe and Greece. The best was yet to come. But life had other plans for Kattash.

In September 2000, while participating in Panathinaikos's pre-season preparations in the familiar surroundings of Rogla, he suffered a kneecap injury. He insisted on undergoing surgery in Israel, performed by the national team's doctor, and on completing his rehabilitation there.

Initial estimates suggested he would be sidelined for two to three months, but when Christmas arrived and the player had still not returned to training, the people at Panathinaikos grew alarmed. Kattash underwent another arthroscopy, which revealed that a microbe had infected his knee during the first surgery. This led to further examinations in Europe and America, as well as additional surgeries—four or five in total—but unfortunately, none yielded results. The damage to his knee was irreversible, and in 2004, the best Israeli player of the 1990s finally brought the curtain down on his career.

He was only 30 years old, still in what should have been the most mature years of his playing career, but in reality, he had not played basketball since the age of 26. It was a real shame for an athlete who had all the qualities needed to leave an indelible mark on the history of European basketball.

Yet he had forever sealed his place in the hearts of Maccabi's fans—the mother whose whole world is her child, who, even on that April night, understood through her tears what her son could not bring himself to say...

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