Seated in the visitor's locker room, players for an Israeli basketball team were preparing before their preseason game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, but they admitted it was hard to focus with a war taking place back home.
"You think all the time about your family, your friends," said Ori Hai, 24, who plays for Maccabi Ra'anana. "You can't really focus about basketball. That doesn't matter right now."
Ra'anana concluded its three-game tour in the U.S. by playing the Timberwolves, playing the games while Israel is at war with Hamas, the militant group governing the Gaza Strip. Players and coaches decided they would continue the games after learning of the war while abroad.