By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
“The truth is that I did not know if I would come back, but I wanted it”. Amare Stoudemire returned to play in Hapoel Jerusalem, the Israeli team in which he is part owner.
It’s a peculiar case since the team even had a farewell ceremony for his retirement, however as Stoudemire himself said to “Walla“: “I missed especially the holy atmosphere of Jerusalem. I had other options in Europe and China, but if I play outside the NBA, I prefer Hapoel Jerusalem.”
For the player who competed in the “BIG3” tournament last summer. it’s obvious that he still has enough gas in the tank, even for an NBA return: “I was very close to returning to the NBA, many teams were interested, but I did not want to wait any longer. There can always be teams in the NBA that will need me, and I’m always ready. If I stayed in the US and waited, it would have happened and I would have gone back to the league. Now the training camps are starting and I wanted to continue practicing and playing, so I came back here. I have an opt-out option in my contract which can be used during the season”.