Lauren Jackson knew her ''fantasy'' life in Moscow couldn't last forever and now women's basketball worldwide is reeling from the murder of one of its most generous patrons.
Spartak Moscow boss Shabtai von Kalmanovich was murdered while sitting in his car near his home in the Russian capital city on Monday.
Jackson who had been in Canberra recovering from stress fractures in her back flew to Israel on Tuesday to attend Kalmanovich's funeral.
Despite Kalmanovich dying more than 14,000km away, the brutal shooting was felt in Canberra.
Injured Canberra Capitals star Abby Bishop met Kalmanovich when she was in Russia for the under-21 world championships in 2007.
''He bought us flowers and wished us all luck and he was really nice to the entire team,'' Bishop said.
''When we were there [in Russia] we weren't even allowed out of our hotel rooms without security.
''It's not good for women's basketball and he obviously put a lot into basketball.''
Kalmanovich, a former KGB spy, was killed when two gunmen armed with a 9mm automatic and a pump-action shotgun fired 20 bullets at the 59-year-old.
He had reportedly paid Jackson more than $1million a season since she joined Spartak in 2004.
It is understood Spartak players including Jackson were regular passengers in Kalmanovich's car and travelled with him around Moscow.
Former Capital Jackson is widely regarded as the world's best female basketball player. Despite playing in the WNBA in the United States, her contract with Spartak provided the majority of her income.
While female players can still earn upwards of $100,000 in Europe, it is unlikely they will be offered the financial reward Kalmanovich was prepared to part with.
''It was one of the most amazing times of my life in Russia,'' Jackson told The Canberra Times in 2007.
''We flew a bit to games and we took a private jet everywhere. The owner [Kalmanovich] of the team treated us like gold, we were treated like royalty. We had a house with a spa and sauna and pool and lived the life of luxury.
''It was pretty unbelievable.''
Russian police said Kalmanovich's death appeared to have been ''carefully planned''.
But there was no immediate information about who could have carried out the killing and what may have motivated it.
Born in Soviet Lithuania in 1949, Kalmanovich and his family emigrated to Israel in 1971. He reportedly agreed to spy for the KGB in return for a permit allowing him to leave Lithuania.
In Israel, Kalmanovich eventually became a government adviser on the resettlement of Soviet Jews.
He also worked as Israel's representative in Sierra Leone.
An Israeli court in 1988 convicted Kalmanovich of espionage and sentenced him to seven years in jail. He was released after serving five years and relocated to Sierra Leone, where he made a fortune in the diamond trade.
Since 1994, Kalmanovich worked in Moscow as director general of the large Tishinsky shopping centre.