Langdon on top of the world

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By VAN WILLIAMS

WATCH OUT, U.S.: International basketball is catching up to NBA.

Trajan Langdon has played against NBA players who are household names. He's played with international players who are largely unknown.

And on most days, he said, the obscure international is every bit the basketball player as the household name.

International basketball is catching up -- some might say it's passed -- U.S. basketball, and you don't need to look farther than the recently concluded world championships, in which Greece knocked the star-studded Americans out of gold medal contention.

Langdon knows. He sees it every night.

"Basketball is being played at a higher level internationally than it is in our country," Langdon said recently by telephone from overseas. "We may have better athletes, but that's not saying we have better basketball players.

"The game is good over here."

Basketball is more global than ever and Langdon has had a front-row seat to watch the world improve, playing for teams in Italy, Turkey and Russia while traveling worldwide.

Given his three seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers and his four years of Euroleague experience, Langdon, 30, is qualified to compare the NBA with the international game.

He believes the gap has been bridged, pointing to the fact that Greece beat the United States in the world championships without a single NBA player.

"Americans need to give the international game more respect.," he said. "(Americans) have the better players, but we don't have the better teams right now."

Langdon argues that the Euroleague talent is comparable to the NBA, and his point was proven last week when two international teams knocked off NBA teams. Langdon's CSKA Moscow team thumped the visiting Los Angeles Clippers 94-75 on Saturday, and the Clippers were an up-and-coming playoff team last season.

The exhibition game was part of the NBA Europe Live event, a preseason tour pitting four NBA teams against top international clubs. The tour will culminate this week in Cologne, Germany, with a four-team tournament. The Phoenix Suns will play the Philadelphia 76ers, and Langdon's Moscow team will face Tel Aviv in a rematch of last season's Euroleague final.

The winners play Wednesday (11 a.m. ADT) on ESPN2. There is also a third-place game, so Langdon will get to play an NBA team no matter what.

"It'll be fun because I think we're a really good team," he said. "We're looking to win."

Saturday, Langdon proved that by scoring a game-high 17 points in leading his Russian team to victory over the Clippers, who cut him in 2004.

Langdon downplayed his desire for revenge on the Clippers, but at the same time he wanted to prove he could play with the best.

"I think guys in the NBA know I can play at that level," he said. "Even if they don't know, I know I can play at that level. I know I can play in the NBA."

Flourishing against NBA competition carried special significance for Langdon, the first Alaskan to play in the NBA and a lottery pick by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1999.

By 2002, though, the 6-foot-4 guard was out of the league, slowed by knee injuries and dogged by a lack of playing time.

"If I was a better athlete, I'd probably still be in the NBA," said Langdon, who was drafted professionally in two sports.

The San Diego Padres picked him in the sixth round of the 1994 Major League Baseball Draft. He played third base for three seasons of single-A ball before changing his focus to hoops.

And even though Langdon didn't stick in the NBA, he is still making a living playing basketball and is grateful for his opportunity in Europe.

He has traveled the world, lived in exotic places like Italy, Turkey and Russia. He's met great friends and won at each stop.

"It's been a great life experience," Langdon said. "I don't look back and say, 'Oh, I wish I could have played more years in the NBA.' I am very fortunate that I've been successful.

"I'm proud of my career."

RUSSIAN INFLUENCE

Langdon has earned his share of hoops hardware over the years -- everything from T-shirts and trophies to ribbons and medals.

But when his Russian professional team, CSKA Moscow, won the equivalent of a European championship last spring, Langdon was given the strangest award he had ever received.

A Soviet machine gun.

He got the gun from Russian Defense Minister Sergey Ivanov during a ceremony to honor the team's first Euroleague title since 1971.

CSKA's captain Sergey Panov was given the rank of lieutenant in the Russian Army and each player was presented with a watch and machine gun.

"It's like a World War II replica," Langdon said. "I actually have it in my apartment."

It was a fitting gift for a deadly jump shooter who gunned down the competition.

Langdon averaged 13 points (season high 27) and shot 43 percent from three-point range in 64 games, earning first team All-Russian League status as well as second team All-Euroleague, Import of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year honors.

More importantly, he ended a season with a championship for the first time in 12 years.

"It was probably the greatest feeling I've ever had on the basketball court," he said. "I was on top of the world."

It was the first time Langdon had finished a season by cutting down the nets since leading East over Juneau in the 1994 Class 4A state title game.

He came close in 1999 with Duke, losing to UConn in the NCAA title game. And he was close in 2003 with Benetton Treviso of Italy, losing to Barcelona in the Euroleague final.

Winning a title hit home with his former coach, Mike Krzyzewski of Duke. So much so that Coach K took time from his busy recruiting schedule to talk about Langdon's recent accomplishment.

"Trajan is just one of the greatest young men I've ever coached. We've become great friends and I'm really proud of what he's doing," Krzyzewski said recently by telephone. "I'm just really pleased that things have turned out so well for him. He deserves it."

Langdon won regular-season titles in college (the ACC, Maui Invitational and Shootout) and won domestic titles overseas (Italian Cup, Turkish Cup, Russian Cup). But those trophies pale in comparison to the Euroleague title, he said.

And best of all for Langdon, he played a key role in the 73-69 victory, scoring 11 points, sinking 3 of 6 three-pointers and draining the clinching free throws with 5.8 seconds left.

"It was amazing. I was literally running around the court screaming," he said. "We were the best team outside of the NBA in the world."

LACED FOR SUCCESS

When Langdon's basketball career ends, he'll likely look to his second passion -- fashion.

Langdon crossed over to the clothing industry four years ago when he became a small-business owner and opened "Lace 'Em Up" in the Northway Mall.

Now he's got his own urban clothing label too.

His line of "Laced" products is not in stores, but he did hand out samples to teammates and received positive feedback.

"We (Lace 'Em Up) just came up with a concept and design, and put together some shirts and shorts," he said. Teammates bought them as a trial run.

Langdon said he would eventually like to have his "Laced" label in his own store, which has expanded and moved to a different part of the Northway Mall.

Soon, "Lace 'Em Up" will change its focus, switching from street and urban wear to mostly shoes and boots due to increased sales.

"We've seen our shoe sales skyrocket," Langdon said. "The Nikes and Jordans are killing."

Langdon knows plenty about shoes, owning more than 100 pairs to match anything he pulls out of his wardrobe.

"Shoes drive clothing sales, regardless of name brand," he said. "That's the move."

Of course, Langdon isn't finished playing basketball. He still has two years left on his contract with CSKA Moscow, meaning the NBA and Jordan sneakers will have to wait.

Then again, he might go in a different direction altogether. He's thought of being a sports agent, working in the front office of a basketball team or enrolling in business school.

Luckily, Langdon doesn't need to figure out his future right away. But he likes having different options.

"I've put myself in a position financially that I can try different things out," Langdon said. "That's one of the things basketball has allowed me to do. When I'm done playing I can find something that I love doing."