So far, the attempt to send a young American basketball player to Israel's top league is proving disastrous. Talent and potential aren't enough to make it in anything. Jeremy Tyler should never have had been sent to Israel, certainly not without someone to supervise, guide and mentor him.
American Jewish teens get into enough trouble when on programs designed for their age and background, but an 18 year old Black basketball prodigy among Israeli men is just a recipe for disaster.
There's an enormous gap between American and Israeli youth, and frequently it can't be conquered. We're in Israel almost forty years, and it seems that American men have a bigger problem fitting into Israeli male society than American women into female society here. It's not a simple matter of learning Hebrew. Women bond more easily than American men.
Generally sports help, but not when the American teenager has had it too easy. Too much talent deprives a person of certain necessary learning and socialization skills. Tyler's handlers made a big mistake, and his immaturity would probably keep him from succeeding wherever he goes next or if he had stayed in the states.
From Tyler's quotations in the media, his chances for success in life are pretty poor. Of course, miracles can always happen. What a waste of money and effort and hype on the part of Maccabi Haifa.
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