"After a week watching the World Cup soccer tournament in South Africa, Spurs forward Richard Jefferson boarded a plane in Johannesburg on the morning of June 30.

While he was on a 12-hour flight to London, his agent told the Spurs his client was opting out of the final season of his contract.

"By the time I landed," Jefferson said, "I had 200 text messages."

The general tone of the digital missives: "You did what?"

"It was a lot of surprise," Jefferson recalled, "but also a lot of wishing me well. People who know you and support you will support whatever decision you make."

Supporting Jefferson's decision was a true act of loyalty, for the veteran small forward left 15 million guaranteed dollars on the table after one of the more disappointing seasons of his nine-year NBA career, a decision the Yahoo! Sports website famously headlined as "Jefferson opts out of contract, mind."

When the Spurs kick off the preseason today with a media day session, Jefferson will be there, answering questions about the four-year, $38.8 million deal that will remove him from uncertainty of a 2011 free-agent market expected to open amid labor uncertainty.

Opting out, he told the Express-News, was never about leaving San Antonio.

"I really enjoyed my first year here," he said. "Obviously, you risk going into a different situation, but I was optimistic things would work out in a positive way and I would stay here.""