Aleksandar Dzikic and Zach Hankins - season 22/23 standouts

The MVP of the 2022–2023 season in the Winner Basket League, as voted by the crowd, coaches, and media, is Zach Hankins. The big man of Hapoel "Bank Yahav" Jerusalem is the first player of the Reds from the capital to win the honor since Lior Eliyahu in the 2014-2015 season.

Hankins recovered from a difficult injury and stormed back to Israel after making his comeback in the Development League last year. He was one of the most dominant players in the league this season on both sides of the court and finished the regular season ranked second in the efficiency index (23.5), first in rebounds (10.1), dunks (2.7), and blocks (1.5), and was one of only two players in the league with at least 70% for two.

The American, who will celebrate 27 this summer, was the pivot of Hapoel both in defense and in attack, whether in the aerial umbrella he provided from behind for the pressure defense of Aleksandar Dzikic or in the strong blocks he arranged for his teammates in attack. He dealt excellently with every opponent in the league, dominated every matchup, and was a senior factor in the team's run to second place in the regular season and, of course, to winning the state cup and qualifying for the Champions League. Well done, Zach!

There were many worthy candidates for the title of coach of the season in the Winner Basket League, but it seems that very few, if any, would disagree with the choice of Aleksandar Dzikic, who received the most votes in the combined poll of male and female surfers of the administration website, the rest of his colleagues on the lines, and the media panel. This is the third time in the last decade that the coach of the Reds from the capital has won the title, after Danny Franco in the 2014–2015 season and Simone Pianijani two years later, both of whom led the team to the championship.

The 52-year-old Serbian surprised quite a few people in the way he built the squad and insisted on his way, even when there were squeaks at the beginning of the season. Very quickly, the team stabilized, presented the strongest defense seen in the Winner Basket League in recent years (73.9 points against in the regular season, only 68.8 in the quarter-final series), and played as a cohesive unit, which really takes the will out of the opposition with its aggressiveness and relentless pressure.

Dzikic kept faith even with players who started the league less well; he did not release anyone during the season and knew how to make the right reinforcements when necessary, such as T.J. Cline, who recently advanced to the top five; Noam Yaakov, who arrived following the injury of Noam Dovrat; and Brandon Brown, who strengthened the squad and became a critical component as the season progressed. In addition, he managed to keep his wide staff in focus and often received the costs from unexpected places, from players who sometimes seemed to be lost.

Hapoel got better and better as the season progressed and almost didn't lose since the beginning of the calendar year. She won the cup with an impressive defensive display, recorded her record achievement in the Champions League by qualifying for the final, and despite a stuttering start to the league, managed to climb to second place with the buzzer of the season. Now, she is hoping to complete a historic double, and after everything she has done this season, no one will be surprised if it happens. You deserve it, Alexander!