Hapoel Holon's summer rebuild kept moving on Saturday, when American guards Rivaldo Soares and Claudell Harris Jr. landed at Ben Gurion Airport to begin pre-season with the Winner League club, ONE reports.
As has become tradition for new arrivals in Holon, a group of supporters was waiting at the terminal to welcome both players before they headed to join their new teammates.
Soares is no stranger to the club or the league. The 26-year-old wing, an Oklahoma alumnus of Cape Verdean descent, returns to Hapoel Holon after a season with Dziki Warszawa in Poland, where he averaged 11.1 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists a game, according to Eurobasket.
"I'm excited and grateful to join Hapoel Holon. From what I've heard, it's a club with a winning culture, amazing fans and high ambitions," Soares said on landing.
Harris Jr., 23, arrives from Promitheas Patras of the Greek League, where he posted 10.1 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game in his first professional season after finishing his college career at Mississippi State, Boston College and Charleston Southern. The 1.93m guard becomes the fourth import signed by Holon this off-season, per Sportando and Eurobasket.
"I'm very excited to be part of the Hapoel Holon family. I've heard so many good things about the people and the city of Holon," Harris Jr. said.
The two guards are the latest pieces in a squad overhaul that has moved quickly through August. Forward Adama Sanogo touched down in Holon on Tuesday, while new head coach Predrag Krunić arrived on Friday to begin work on the bench, ONE reported.
Forward Greg Lee, who joins after a productive season with ESSM Le Portel in France, was also due into Israel later on Saturday as Hapoel Holon continues assembling its roster ahead of the new Winner League campaign.
