OKC Thunder home court at Chesepeake Energy Arena. Photo: wiki commons.

A month after meeting the cast of Showtime’s “Homeland” series in Israel, Gilad Shalit will be coming to the United States to cover the NBA Finals for Yediot Ahronot – Israel’s leading newspaper.

The newspaper has hired Shalit – the former Israeli soldier who was captured by Hamas and held captive for 5 years until his release, in exchange for over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners – as a sports columnist, and his first assignment will be to cover the best of 7 series between the Miami Heat and Oklahoma City Thunder.

Tamir Goodman, dubbed by Sports Illustrated as “The Jewish Jordan”, says he was thrilled to hear about Shalit’s new position.

“I know he has a passion and love for basketball, so I’m excited that he’s got this new job,” he told The Algemeiner.  “He’s obviously a hero for all of us and we can’t even imagine how mentally strong he is.  Basketball, when used in the right way and with proper intentions, is a great thing and a holy thing that can do a lot of good.”

Goodman, who is currently hosting a basketball camp with Israeli NBA star Omri Caspi, says he knows Caspi and Shalit have spent time together in the past, and that he believes Shalit will have a positive impact on the game.

“He’s obviously very bright and very smart, so I hope basketball can be good for him.  I’m sure he’ll be great for it.”