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00:00 All right, so let's start at the beginning this summer.
00:05 Your recruitment here,
00:06 when did you first hear from West Virginia?
00:08 Had you always wanted to come to the United States to play?
00:12 How'd you get here?
00:14 I've always, like in the last three years,
00:18 always thought about coming to play in college
00:21 because I really think the jump from high school to college
00:25 then to pros, it's really a good stage
00:28 when you can become a better person and a better player.
00:33 And you can learn a lot about the game.
00:36 Like, it's a way different game in America and in Europe,
00:40 and you can learn more about, like, basketball in general.
00:44 So I think that's a really good step for me
00:46 and for a lot of other people.
00:49 I came to the US two days before the school started,
00:54 so I think it was 14th of August.
00:59 I first heard from West Virginia
01:01 not about, like, two weeks before that.
01:04 Like, my decision was very clear.
01:07 Once they called me,
01:09 I knew I couldn't say no to that opportunity.
01:11 Even though at first I didn't think I would play
01:15 because of the circumstances,
01:17 like, I managed to be able to play and start.
01:20 So I'm really thankful for that,
01:22 but still, I would come every time.
01:27 Has the transition been harder, easier
01:30 than you thought it would be?
01:33 I live -- This is my fifth year out of home,
01:37 so it's not that hard for me.
01:40 I'm not really a home person.
01:42 But I think it's way easier than I thought it would be
01:46 because of my teammates and my coaches
01:49 and my family back in Israel.
01:51 Everybody supports me over here,
01:53 and they're all really good people.
01:55 So, yeah, I think it was easier than I thought it would be.
02:01 How is it being in the game tomorrow?
02:02 It's like the Western Europe pitch, like the big rivalry.
02:06 Overseas, what are rivalry games like overseas
02:09 and some of the rivalries you've been involved in?
02:10 Is there any interesting stories?
02:13 Mm-hmm.
02:14 I play for Maccabi Tel Aviv,
02:16 and Maccabi Tel Aviv and Napoli Tel Aviv.
02:18 It's like Pitt and West Virginia,
02:20 so I know about -- We call it Derby.
02:23 So I know about how important it is,
02:25 and, like, I know it's a very competitive ball game,
02:30 and everyone wants to win,
02:31 and it can be, like, sometimes cheapy.
02:34 But, I mean, I think we're all going to do the best.
02:38 And, yeah, we're going to --
02:40 What were those rivalry games like?
02:42 You know, I kind of think of some soccer matches
02:44 where you're breaking out on the stands.
02:46 What's it like in basketball?
02:48 Well, it's not like football, like soccer.
02:52 Yeah, but it's still very, very important,
02:56 like, to our people and to our clubs
03:00 because, like, it's about our pride.
03:03 Like, we won't lose to them,
03:05 and it's been going on for years.
03:07 But I really like the competition,
03:10 and that's it, basically.
03:12 Walk around, and that's the game people talk to you about.
03:15 Yeah, exactly.
03:17 Have you done better on the court
03:20 than you envisioned as a first-year player?
03:22 Does the game come easier to you?
03:25 Yes, I think my play style is more like
03:29 I can show more of my skills over here
03:31 because of the fast game
03:34 and the transition game and that legacism.
03:38 So, yeah, I think, like, I'm more capable over here
03:43 than back in Israel.
03:45 How much different is the physicality?
03:48 Yeah, it's way different from playing,
03:51 like, for me being one of the highest
03:54 or, like, tallest in my team
03:56 to being middle, low, and, like, very small over here.
04:02 Every team is way bigger than I used to play against,
04:06 so it's way more harder to get used to.
04:09 But I think that's, like I mentioned before,
04:12 that's a good step before going to pros.
04:16 Like, be able to play and practice every day
04:19 with those kind of bodies will get you to be used
04:22 to the pro level so easier and so much faster.
04:27 Coach was earlier telling a story
04:29 about how he had you guys go into the football games,
04:33 especially the pit game.
04:35 Were you there at the...
04:36 Yeah.
04:37 What was your reaction walking around,
04:40 seeing that atmosphere?
04:41 It was unbelievable.
04:43 Like, the whole stadium was singing songs
04:47 and hyping our crowd and our football team.
04:50 I mean, that was an unbelievable experience.
04:54 Was that your first probably introduction,
04:56 I guess, right, to the whole West Virginia?
04:58 Yes.
05:01 How much bigger and stronger do you need to get,
05:03 you know, over the course of your career?
05:05 Yeah, I think I need to add, like, 20 or 25 more pounds.
05:11 Right now, I'm 185, 66, 67.
05:15 So I'm working with Coach Sean every day,
05:18 and he's taking sure that and making sure
05:21 that I eat the right stuff, I eat enough,
05:24 and I've gained 16 pounds since I came here
05:28 in the three months over here.
05:31 You lift a lot of weight when you were,
05:34 you know, back at home.
05:35 Israel, when previously,
05:37 you guys work out in the weight rooms much,
05:39 or that's new to you?
05:40 The weight lifting is new to me,
05:43 but we did more of a core and mobility exercise
05:47 every day with our strength goals.
05:50 So, yeah.
05:53 With what's going on back home,
05:55 can you think that West Virginia
05:57 really is a serious rivalry?
06:00 That's a little different.
06:01 Yeah.
06:03 I think, like, I know about the history
06:06 that, like, West Virginia and Pitt
06:09 played each other most than ever,
06:11 other, like, college team.
06:14 So I know it's a big rivalry,
06:16 but I also know about Maccabi Tel Aviv
06:18 and Apollo Tel Aviv, so that's also a big rivalry.
06:21 So if Maccabi Tel Aviv and Apollo Tel Aviv
06:25 was so important to me, I know for sure
06:28 West Virginia and Pitt would be so important to me, too.
06:31 Have you watched the coverage on television of the war?
06:34 Hmm? Have you watched the coverage
06:35 of the war over there on television here?
06:38 No, I didn't see.
06:40 I just saw...
06:43 Yeah, it's, like, too much.
06:45 Yeah, but I see the notification on my phone
06:49 when, like, stuff happens over there,
06:51 but I try to not focus this as much.
06:54 Do you talk to your family?
06:56 Much. Do you keep in contact with them?
06:58 Yeah, I talk to them every day.
07:00 Mm-hmm.
07:02 I mean, this has got to be difficult, though,
07:03 being a long ways away from home,
07:05 and we all know what's happening over there.
07:07 Is it hard to keep your concentration?
07:10 It's kind of hard, like, sometimes,
07:13 'cause it's really crazy what's going on, and it's awful.
07:17 But I know I got to be strong for them
07:20 so they don't have to worry about me, too.
07:22 Like, they already have stuff to deal with,
07:25 so I'm being strong for them.
07:26 We'll help us both.
07:30 Is your hometown near where any of this is going on?
07:33 No, my hometown is not going on.
07:36 It's in the north side.
07:37 Okay.
07:39 Just the life in the United States,
07:43 I mean, for somebody who hadn't lived here before,
07:46 hardest things to get used to, things you like,
07:48 things you don't like?
07:50 I really like nature over here and the views,
07:53 the mountains, the trees.
07:54 Like, I'm really a nature guy,
07:56 so I'm really happy to wake up to snow or, like, stuff like that.
08:03 And the food was hot.
08:05 The first time, I would get sick easily because of the grease,
08:09 but I got used to this.
08:14 Yeah, and definitely the English part,
08:17 but I'm learning, and I'll be better at it.
08:21 Do you have, like, a go-to food
08:23 that's been helping you add more weight?
08:25 Uh, I'd say Panera.
08:30 Yeah.
08:31 What food do you mix from home?
08:33 Maybe it's something you don't get here.
08:37 Shawarma.
08:39 I don't know if you know about that.
08:40 It's like a tortilla kind of luffa, it's called,
08:45 and it's, like, beef and turkey.
08:48 So, yeah, you have to try it.
08:52 Anything else?
08:56 Thanks, Ralfre. Thank you.