Former standout from Mercer Men’s Basketball, Langston Hall, has taken his talents to Italy and has been competing with the Giorgio Tesi Pistoia.
“I have improved my decision-making skills as a passer on offense, but I definitely have been focusing on my defense the most,” said Hall.
While in Italy, Hall plays a pivotal role on his team as the “primary ball handler, playmaker and defender.”
Although Hall feels as though he is improving as a player, he believes that there is more that his team can do to improve and that the team has a chance to make the playoffs.
“We have had an up and down year, but we are 9-10, which is tied for seventh place out of 16 teams,” said Hall. “The top 8 make the playoffs, and there is a four-way tie for seventh place right now.”
While in Italy, Hall has earned a starting point guard spot for the Giorgio Tesi. He averages 6.8 points, 2.9 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game. Hall has played in 18 games (out of 19) and averages about 27.7 minutes per game, which is one of the higher averages on the team. Although Hall was a huge asset for Mercer’s offense, he has been trying to improve the other side of his game.
The team has 10 more games left in regular season of play, which is plenty of time to improve before playoffs.
While basketball takes up most of his time, Hall has been enjoying Italy and all that the historic city has to offer.
“I like living in Italy a lot! It's a very beautiful country with a lot of nice historic buildings,” Hall said. “Because we play all over the Italy, I have be able to see a lot of the country.”
Depending upon if his team makes the playoffs, Hall will be finished with his first year of professional basketball around May, and he is unsure as to where basketball will take him next.
“As of right now, I'm not sure about where I will play next year,” said Hall. “After the season, I will come back home and talk with my agent about that.”
After such a decorated career as Mercer Bear and his current career in European professional basketball, Hall sincerely hopes to continue working on his dream of becoming an NBA player.
During his time at Mercer, Hall was a four-year starter and a crucial member of the team. He contributed to a number of historic victories including a CIT title, an Atlantic Sun Championship and the memorable win over the Duke Blue Devils in the NCAA tournament.
Alone, Hall has been named to the A-Sun All Conference Freshman Team, he was the CIT Tournament MVP and the A-Sun Crons Achiever, he was named to A-Sun All Conference First Team (in 2012 and 2014) and A-Sun Second Team All Conference, and he was awarded the A-Sun Player of the Year. During his senior season, Hall averaged 14.6 points, 5.6 assists and 3.1 rebounds per game. He also finished his collegiate career as the all-time leader in assists for the Atlantic Sun Conference.
Alumni Spotlight: Langston Hall still has dreams for NBA
