NBA player Moshe Casspi explains he remains committed to his Jewish roots. He used Instagram to get this message out, posting a photo of himself davening while wearing tallis and tefilin. The following text accompanied the photo; “A few days ago I merited meeting with Rabbi Yaakov Adas. He is a pure tzaddik. We spoke of the merit of [putting on] tefilin, Shabbos, kashrus, modesty, values, derech eretz and more. I learned so much from this modest man. I daven for Am Yisrael and the world should not say an evil word”.

“When I asked how the rabbi maintains tznius despite his absolute profound Torah knowledge he replied ‘I understand the greatness of the Gedolim…’ and he emphasized the need to continue studying a great deal and cited how much progress must be made. Everyone can relate to this without a doubt” he added.

“I acknowledge my gratitude every morning for all that I have as well as that I do not have and certainly for the privilege of learning from such amazing people” Casspi concluded.

Those close to Casspi report he remains in constant contact with a number of rabbonim who influence and guide him.

Wikipedia:

Omri Moshe Casspi is an Israeli professional basketball player for the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association. He is 6 ft 9 in tall, and plays the small forward position, but he can play also at the power forward position.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)