Rebound: Inside Look at YU’s Inspiring Basketball Team

Over the past few years, the Yeshiva University’s men basketball team has been breaking records and making history. They were on a 50-game winning streak that ended in 2020. They were the NCAA’s sole all-Jewish basketball team. And one of their players, Ryan Turell, became the first Orthodox Jew selected in the G League draft.

Ryan Turell

All this attention caught the eye of a Hollywood sports producer who decided to make a documentary on them.

The team was in the middle of filming when October 7 happened. It was a day when 1,200 Israelis were murdered and 250 were kidnapped to Gaza; it was also the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.

After this horrible day, the teammates had a difficult choice to make: Should they stop playing for the season out of solidarity or should they continue?

“Rebound: A Year of Triumph and Tragedy at Yeshiva University Basketball,” a new documentary about the team that’s streaming on FOX Nation, captures the moments before and after October 7. Ultimately, the players – six of whom are Israeli – decide to continue with their season and visit Israel. Their tears, triumphs, and trip are all caught on film.

“This film is about more than basketball,” said Yeshiva University President Rabbi Dr. Ari Berman. “When you play for Yeshiva University you are not just playing for a school, you are playing for a people. In the wake of October 7, our basketball team made a defining choice: to stand tall as proud Jews, embodying unity, and strength far beyond the court. Wherever we go, on and off the court, we stand as one—honored to represent our community and the enduring spirit of our people.”

Going to Israel After October 7

While in Israel, the YU men’s basketball team went to the site of the Nova festival, as well as the museum created to honor the victims, and gave support to IDF soldiers fighting in the war. They also visited Kibbutz Be’eri to witness the destruction and met with former hostage Ofir Engel. The Israeli team members saw their family.

Max Zakheim, a guard who has been playing on the team for three years, said, “Visiting Israel right after October 7 was an experience I’ll never forget. We visited many of the sites impacted by the attacks and met several people who were directly affected.”

He continued, “All of these experiences were incredibly powerful, and I believe it was very important for my team and me to witness them firsthand. As for my Israeli teammates, I just tried to be there for them—asking if they needed anything or simply checking in to see how they were doing. But those kids are tough as nails. They handled it with incredible strength.”

The YU Team visiting Southern Israel after October 7

One of the Israeli players, Tom Beza, arranged for the team to meet with Ofir Engel, who was 17 when Hamas kidnapped him from Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7. He was released after 54 days in captivity, and in the documentary, he stands in front of the ruins of his kibbutz and tells the players his story. He urges them to tell the world the truth about what happened in Israel.

“I think the only time I actually smiled in this trip to the kibbutz was when I saw Ofir,” Tom said. “It was such a happy moment. I had the goosebumps meeting him.”

“Rebound” also shows highlights from the first game after October 7 and how it will impact the season. In one part, the players are sitting in the locker room, wearing Bring Them Home shirts with the hostages’ faces on them, listening to guard Zevi Samet, who wears a kippah, sharing inspiring words of Jewish wisdom.

“This world is considered like nighttime,” he tells them. “If a person doesn’t know why he’s alive and why he’s doing anything in this world, then anything that comes his way, he’s going to stumble as if it’s nighttime. We all know, and we prepared and we’re ready. We know what our goal is and what we have to do tonight. Let’s make sure we can focus and lock into that.”

Zevi discusses how he has become the team’s spiritual leader and how powerful their role is for the Jewish people.

“When they see us playing together, I think it brings a light to many people,” he says.

Focusing on a Larger Mission

For the YU team, the work they do is part of their mission statement: to give hope to others when it’s needed the most.

The YU team’s mission is to give hope to others when it’s needed the most.

“Sports bring people together from all different ages and religious backgrounds,” Zevi said. “Basketball is a platform to inspire.”

Max elaborated on this: “Athletes, no matter the level, are looked up to,” he said. “Especially as a Jewish college basketball player at a Jewish university, you’re always in the spotlight. My teammates and I try to hold ourselves to a high standard to spread positivity and highlight the beauty of Judaism.”

In a time of rising antisemitism, Max and all his teammates are proudly visible Jews, on and off the court.

“I believe it’s important to stand up for what you believe in and to be true to who you are,” he said. “Most importantly, it’s about showing the world what it means to be a Jew. That comes with responsibility. But it’s a responsibility we’re proud to carry.”

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