Trajan Langdon

Trajan Shaka Langdon (born May 13, 1976) is an American basketball executive and former professional player. He is the current president of basketball operations for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) and 211 lb (96 kg) shooting guard, he first gained fame in the U.S. while playing college basketball at Duke University.

Following a three-year NBA stint, Langdon had a very successful career in Europe. A three-time All-EuroLeague Team member and the EuroLeague Final Four MVP in 2008, he won two EuroLeague titles with CSKA Moscow in 2006 and 2008.

In March 2016, he was named the assistant general manager of the Brooklyn Nets, serving in the role until May 2019, when he was named the general manager of the New Orleans Pelicans. On May 31, 2024, he was hired as President of Basketball Operations by the Detroit Pistons.

Born in Palo Alto, California, Langdon moved to Anchorage, Alaska soon after. During his high school career, Langdon attended Steller Secondary School, and played with East Anchorage High School. He set the Alaska 4A state record of 2,200 career points scored, and was a 3-time Alaskan State Player of the Year.

He led East Anchorage to the 1994 Alaskan State Championship, and he played in the McDonald's All-American Game, where he won the 3-point shooting contest.

Langdon also played high school baseball. Although his seasons were only twelve games long, as a senior he hit .333 with four home runs and 12 RBI. In the league championship game, he gave up only four hits and struck out eleven batters.

After high school, Langdon moved on to play NCAA Division I college basketball at Duke, where he set the school record for the most career 3-point field goals made (which was broken by JJ Redick in 2006), earning him the nickname, "The Alaskan Assassin". A major knee injury kept him sidelined for his entire sophomore year, so he finished his college career as a fifth year guard.

In the 1999 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament championship game, with Duke down 1 point to the UConn Huskies, with 5.4 seconds to go in the game, Langdon attempted to drive the ball into the lane, and committed a traveling violation that turned the ball over to UConn. Analysts, as well as Langdon himself, credited the defense of Ricky Moore, who was considered the top defensive player in the tournament, for forcing the travel.