Volume 67, Issue 4  

Mac Spotlight: Alex Lapidus

by Binyamin Muschel

It had been a good season for Alex Lapidus.  Making the team in his first year at YU, he managed to contribute off the bench, probably earning himself a starting spot for the 2002-03 season.  But his plans for this season changed last April, on the courts of the Eden Roc Hotel in Miami Beach.  Playing in a pickup game a few days after finishing his work at the Eden Roc where he was employed as a waiter over Pesach, Alex went up for a lay-up and, with a slight push from behind, came down injured, clutching his knee.  The diagnosis: a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.  Though able to walk with a limp, running or playing ball was out of the question.  Surgery followed in August, in a Toronto hospital, where they (“they” being a surgical team which had recently operated on the NBA’s Vince Carter) put a new ACL in his knee.  The plan for the season had changed dramatically.

Born in Russia, raised in Israel, high school in Toronto—the journey to YU has been a long, winding one, but Alex, 21, is managing just fine.  Planning to stay four years, he opted to take a double major in accounting and MIS.  In the mornings, Alex studies in JSS, and spends his free time with the accounting and chess clubs.  But this year adds a new program to Alex’s schedule: loads and loads of physical therapy.  “I’m working hard in the weight room, and Aaron [Meyer, the Macs’ trainer] is helping me out,” he says.  “Aaron says that I’m doing well, ahead of schedule.  It’s still too early to say anything; it’s only been two months since I had the surgery.”  Officially, Alex is supposed to be out for the year, but he remains optimistic. “I’m taking it day by day, working hard, and we’ll see what happens.  I’m not worried about two months from now; I’m worried about tomorrow.  I put my hours in the weight room every day, and that’s all I can expect to do for now.”  His focus is the exercise bike, trying to bring his knee back into shape.

Currently, Alex spends team practices in the weight room, but expects to start practicing with the team after intersession.  He does like the team’s chances, though.  “It’ll be a tough season, but I think we have a good chance,” he explains.  “We have a lot of guys who are gonna play.  We’ve come a long way, and still have a lot of work to do, but I think the team is looking good.  We’re gonna have a lot of guys who are gonna step up.  And obviously we’ve got Eli [Hami, the team’s captain], who can score anytime.  Hami is one of the best players in the league right now at his position, so eventually teams are gonna have to double team him and leave a lot of other people on the court open for easy shots.”  For now, though, Alex can only hope he will be one of those other people on the court.

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