They're the New York Yankees, the Montreal Canadiens and the old Boston Celtics all rolled into one. They're as dominant as any basketball team you'll find, a seamless steamroller that has won 45 of 51 Israeli titles and five European championships.

Players who wear the famous blue and yellow of Maccabi Tel Aviv, a team that's in Toronto today to take on the Raptors, say it's an incredible, almost indescribable experience. Asked if he's recognized a lot in Tel Aviv, guard Derrick Sharp nods.

"Driving. Walking. At nighttime. With black shades on. They notice you still. It's amazing over there.

"The fans are what's made the team," Sharp said yesterday before a tightly-guarded Maccabi practice at the Air Canada Centre, one in which security guards were summoned to shoo the media away from their third-deck perch lest they somehow learn a play or two and communicate it to the guys in purple and red. "The fans are the reason we were European champs three of the last five years. And they'll be here tomorrow. The game is just about sold out because there's a big Jewish community here. Everywhere we go, the fans follow."

"We get the VIP treatment," said former Raptor Maceo Baston, who joined Maccabi two years ago but was greeted warmly by Toronto staffers and former teammates yesterday. "It's like we're 15 Michael Jordans over there."

Some observers say Maccabi Tel Aviv has more followers than the Israeli national team. When Maccabi beat Bologna two years ago for the Euro title, more than 250,000 fans sardined themselves into a Tel Aviv park to watch the game on a giant TV screen.

Like the Yankees, Maccabi has been accused of buying championships. Some say it's to the detriment of Israeli basketball. But others say the publicity Maccabi has brought is priceless.