She was in a real estate bidding war with AFL players and turned down "more money than I could imagine" in China, but Australian Opals star Elizabeth Cambage says she's ready to slam dunk in the WNBL and world championships.
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Cambage and the Opals are in Canberra to continue fine-tuning their world championship preparations for the tournament in Turkey in September.
The 203-centimetre centre will shoulder the Opals' hopes of winning a gold medal as four-time Olympian Lauren Jackson is eased back into action after knee surgery.
And after becoming the first female to slam dunk at the Olympic Games two years ago, Cambage has her sights set on making it a regular part of her game.
The 22-year-old turned down lucrative offers to stay in China - reportedly more than $100,000 a month - to focus on longevity and the Opals.
"It's good just to refresh; it's a bit of a clean slate for me," Cambage said.
"Most people tell you to go for the money when you're young, but I'm finally in a place where I realise money isn't everything.
"There's so much more to chasing money ... the money in China ended up getting pretty ridiculous and more money than I could have ever imagined, so hopefully it's still there next year.
"But right now I just need to focus on me and staying at home ... I'm looking for a house. I was at an auction on Sunday and stormed off because I'm sick of it. I got out-bid by a Hawthorn player, but it's all good."
Jackson is in camp with the Opals despite needing more time to recover after having a knee operation last month.
Jackson, 33, has had surgery three times this year to fix knee and Achilles problems. The latest setback will keep her off the court until the Opals' last warm-up games for the world championships.
Both Jackson (Canberra Capitals) and Cambage (Dandenong Rangers) will play in the WNBL this year, setting up a massive tussle between two of Australia's best female basketballers.
Cambage was thrust into the spotlight at the 2012 Olympic Games and admits she didn't didn't handle the pressure to the best of her ability.
"Fingers are crossed Loz gets her knee right ... I hated the pressure on me at the Olympics. I learnt a lot and still am," Cambage said.
"[Slam dunking in London] still feels weird ... when I play I don't think, I'd love to dunk whenever I wanted, but I'm scared of missing."
Opals coach Brendan Joyce said: "I encourage players to have a bit of flair in what we're doing, so if Liz wants to dunk the ball, go ahead and dunk the ball."
