Hapoelto cashinon Stoudemire
BASKETBALL AMAR’E Stoudemire has described his move to Hapoel Jerusalem as the next part of his spiritual journey following his surprise arrival from NBA side Miami Heat.
Stoudemire’s arrival was front-page news in Israel after the power forward, who stands at 6ft 10”, signed a twoyear deal with the Israeli club.
He confirmed he declined the offer of a contract extension option in Miami and rival NBA teams to join Hapoel — a club he owns a stake in — which he will now have to sell in order to play for.
Stoudemire has often spoken about having “Jewish roots” on his mother’s side and is a frequent visitor to Israel. He participated in the 2013 Maccabiah as assistant coach of the Canada team and was the centre of attention before the opening ceremony, with athletes from rival delegations queuing up for selfies.
He said: “This is a very, very emotional decision for me because at this moment I have to uproot my family who have been stable in the USA to move to a different country.
“It’s also a spiritual journey as well. The next phase of my career — people have documented my journey with the Holy Land for the past six years, the interest in playing in Israel. That dream has now come true.”
Born in Florida, Stoudemire was an NBA player for 14 years and became interested in Judaism during his five years with the New York Knicks between 2010 and 2015. An NBA allstar player six times, he had a career average of 19 points.
Hapoel Jerusalem owner Ori Allon said: “We are thrilled to have a player of Amar’e’s calibre join our team, solidifying our place among the top echelon of Israeli and European basketball.
“More importantly, bringing Amar’e to Jerusalem raises the profile of the Israeli basketball league. We hope that his arrival will lead to increased interest from fans around the world.”