Former EuroLeague scoring king Keith Langford set to return to AEK Athens / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: FIBA Media Credit FIBA Media

Following AEK Athens's loss at Peristeri last Sunday, coach Stefanos Dedas when asked about possible signings, made it perfectly clear: "Right now, only Keith Langford can come."

Keith Langford

Position:SG, PGAge:38Height:193 cmWeight:98 kgBirth place:Texas, United States of AmericaProfileNewsStatistics

According toStefanos Makris of Sport24.gr,the American guard will indeed come back to his former team. Langford's clearance letter is still in Greece since he hasn't played anywhere after leaving AEK last summer.

The Greek side is dealing with 17 FIBA bans which prevent them from signing any player whose last team wasn't in Greece. That's why they recently acquired former Panathinaikos shooter Andy Rautins, who had played for the Greens for a couple of months in 2020, and Greek players Antonis Koniaris and Giannis Kouzeloglou.

AEK had looked into Langford's case a few weeks ago, but their interest did not go any further. The 38-year-old veteran finished last season, his second with AEK, being injured and didn't play in the campaign's final stretch.

Some might find the imminent deal a bit peculiar, since last June, the athlete took to Twitter to voice his opinion on teams not being financially dependant.

"I encourage AEK and many other clubs like it struggling logistically to not budget using money they don't have," he wrote and added:

"Use direct lines of communication about the situation of your club, and give players the freedom to make their own decisions regarding those conditions.

This will result in a much better working environment for both parties and a more competitive result. I recognize that the opportunity for an up and coming player to play on one of the best stages Greece has to offer is more important than my personal feelings regarding the things said about me within AEK and the poor business model that followed."

Points this season

42%78,5Points made:78,5Accuracy:42,3%Place in standings:14Record max:88Record min:69Best scorer:Ian HummerTeamBCLStatisticsSchedule

However, after getting the guarantees he wanted, the two-time EuroLeague's top scorer agreed with the team coached by Stefanos Dedas and is expected to re-join his former teammate and friend Quino Colom. They played together for two years at UNICS Kazan (2015-17).

"I have a lot of respect for Nick Calathes, and I think he's great, but Quino is a special point guard, my favorite to play with during my career," Langford told BasketNews in an interview last July.

AEK had made some first contacts with Langford's side over Christmas, with the deal being finalized almost three weeks later. Langford was the team's top scorer throughout his two years (2019-21) at OAKA.

He will be called to fill in for Braian Angola, who suffers from COVID-related complications and will be sidelined for the foreseeable future.

Keith Langford averaged 17.5 points on 40.5% three-point shooting over 12 Basketball Champions League games with AEK in the 2020-21 season, but the Greek team failed to qualify for the TOP 8.

This season, AEK have been eliminated from the BCL but have made the Greek Cup Final Four, set to take place in Crete between 18 and 20 February.

"Being 37, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel," Langford told BasketNews.

"The thing that I want the most at the end of my career is acceptance; accepting the career I've had and the way I want to live the game: without injuries, playing at a good level, and knowing that I've given everything mentally and physically.

I'm going to leave the game when there's nothing else in my body and in my mind to give to basketball."

Let's see what the future will have in store for him.

Watch Keith Langford's full interview with BasketNews:

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