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Arroyo touches down, says he's ready to take lead at Maccabi By Oren Kessler Maccabi Tel Aviv's newly signed point guard Carlos Arroyo, the highest-paid player in club history, arrived in Israel last night to a warm welcome from hundreds of fans at Ben-Gurion International Airport. The Puerto Rico native said he is aware of the high expectations placed on him by the team's management and fans, and is ready to lead the Israeli powerhouse to a championship this year. Advertisement Maccabi signed the 6'2", 200-pound point-man to a record $2.5 million a year contract a month ago. The 29-year-old will take part in the team's first practice of the 2008-09 season, having last week led Puerto Rico to the gold medal at the CentroBasket tournament, the biennial championship tournament for Central American countries. "This is a very big step in my career," he said on arriving at the airport. "It'll be a great experience." "I always have high expectations," he added. "The crowd here is amazing, and I can hardly wait to start playing." Arroyo starred during four seasons at Florida International University. Though not drafted out of college, he accumulated seven years of NBA experience with five different teams. Arroyo played at Denver and Toronto in addition to three-year stints with both Utah and Orlando, averaging 6.9 points and 3.5 assists with the Magic last season. When his contract ran out with at Orlando, Arroyo considered signing with New York and Miami, but eventually decided to join the growing exodus of NBA players seeking to make their mark in the European leagues. "I played a lot in the NBA, and I felt there was a need to make a change. I wanted to be a more effective player for my team, and with Maccabi I'll be able to be that," he said. Arroyo is taking the expectations in his stride, saying, "I'm ready for the challenge." He added that he is already familiar with Maccabi forwards Rodney White and Marcus Fizer, and center Esteban Batista. "We want to win a championship and I'm excited to be here. I don't have any problem leading the team, I'm prepared for it." Arroyo is known as a deft passer and capable scorer, and for the mental toughness characteristic of players from the island. He is the fifth Puerto Rican to have won a slot in the NBA. Puerto Rico is a Central American powerhouse, having taken a medal in each of the CentroBasket tournaments in which it played since 1965. In the 2004 Olympics, Arroyo scored 25 points in the team's shocking 19-point rout of the United States. Maccabi, the most prestigious team in Israeli basketball, disappointed last season, falling to Hapoel Holon in the title game and losing the State Cup to Hapoel Jerusalem. Bookmark to del.icio.us   'I didn't kill Rose' Ronny Ron, grandfather of missing 4-year-old, recants his confession. Diplomatic incident Olympic medalist Shahar Zubari stirs controversy, calling Chinese 'shits'.

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