Ostler, a former University of Hawai'i standout, was invited this week to participate on the summer team for the New York Knicks.

He will play in the Reebok Pro Summer League at Boston, July 14-20, and then in the Rocky Mountain Revue at Salt Lake City, July 21-26.

"I'm finally getting a chance," Ostler said. "I had a couple good years in Europe, but all along I was hoping to get a chance in the NBA."

Ostler was a co-captain and the second-leading scorer on UH's NCAA Tournament team of 2001. In the two years since, he has played for Skonto, a team in Latvia.

Ostler, a 6-foot-10, 225-pound forward, averaged 20.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists last season in the Northern European Basketball League (NEBL). He was also selected to the all-star game, and won the slam-dunk contest.

"I got a lot more consistent," he said. "My first year, I would have a good game, then a couple of bad ones.

This year, I was getting 20 points on a regular basis."

Earlier this year, Ostler qualified for citizenship in Latvia — a small country west of Russia and north of Lithuania. As a result, he has been invited to play on the Latvian national team during the European Championships in September.

If Latvia qualifies for the 2004 Olympics, Ostler could participate in that as well.

"That's all kind of secondary right now," Ostler said. "If I make it with an NBA team, I'm going to stay (in the United States)."

In the past three weeks, Ostler attended private workouts with the Knicks, Utah Jazz and Sacramento Kings.

"He had a good workout with New York and so he was one of three players they invited on to their summer league team," said his agent, Ben Pensack.

The NBA-sponsored summer leagues feature players who will be selected in Thursday's NBA Draft, potential free agents, and players who just completed their first or second years in the NBA.

Former UH standout Predrag Savovic participated in the Rocky Mountain Revue last year. Carl English also could play in a summer league if he is drafted on Thursday.

Ostler, Savovic and English were teammates at UH during the 2000-01 season.

If an NBA team does not sign Ostler after the summer leagues, he said he will return to Europe, although probably not to Latvia.

According to Pensack, Ostler increased his value in Europe by gaining Latvian citizenship.

European teams are limited to two American players per season, but Ostler can now market himself as either an American or European player.

One of the top teams in Greece has requested a private workout for Ostler later this summer. A contract with that team could be worth between $250,000 and $400,000 per season, according to Pensack.