When the Utah Jazz told him a day before training camp that he wouldn't be re-signed, NBA veteran Tom Chambers worked a deal in a matter of hours with the Israeli team Maccabi Tel Aviv.
That was the easy part."Things happened so fast, I didn't even have a passport," said Chambers, who played 14 years in the NBA. "I had to go up to San Francisco and get in line to get one."
Chambers has yet to set foot in Israel. He'll do that this weekend after playing with Maccabi in London in the McDonald's Championship.
The two-time defending NBA champion Houston Rockets are the overwhelming favorites to win what is regarded as the unofficial championship of clubs. Maccabi plays Buckler Bologna and Real Madrid plays England's Sheffield Sharks in tonight's games.
The Rockets play Friday against the Perth Wildcats. The winner of Friday's other game will play either the Rockets or the Wildcats for the title on Saturday.
"I think all these other guys here should be thrilled to have a chance to play against Houston," Chambers said. "I wouldn't be that thrilled if we get through to play against them - they beat us (the Jazz) out of the playoffs the last two years."
The 36-year-old Chambers didn't wince when several reporters in London called him "an ex-NBA player." The 6-foot-10 forward said he was looking forward to going where he was needed after two subpar seasons at Utah.
He said he wouldn't rule out returning to the NBA next year, but added, "That's probably not going to be in my hands."
He said he probably could have stayed this year if he'd have waited for more offers.
"But this deal came up, it was there and it wouldn't have been there if I had waited," he said.
Chambers averaged only 6.4 points last season with the Jazz, a long way from 1986-87 with Seattle when he averaged 23.3 and was the MVP in the 1987 All-Star game.
"Money isn't a problem now, I've made a lot of money," Chambers said. "I don't look at this as a step down. This team is going to look to me to step up and score 25 points a game and do just about everything."
Chambers said he made $1.7 million the last two years with Utah. He declined to confirm reports he'll make about $500,000 in Israel, increasingly one of Europe's best leagues.
Like many older players who spend their last few seasons in Europe, Chambers said he is approaching it "as a chance to have my eyes opened and learn new things."
"This is an opportunity to do something different and maybe help this team do well in European competition," Chambers said. "I can't say that two weeks ago I expected to do this, but it's something I've thought about for several years now."
Chambers said he almost jumped to Europe two years ago, trying to work out deals in Italy, Spain or Greece.