AJ EDU is ready to get back on the court and once again help in the Toledo Rockets.
The 6-foot-10 junior, a former Gilas Pilipinas Youth member, is coming off of three knee injuries since 2019. He said he's ready to contribute to the cause of the Rockets as they make a strong case in the Mid-American Conference this 2021-22 season.
"It's been great to watch this team play," he told WTOL11. "It's almost like I'm a fan watching them and enjoying the great basketball that's played. If I can add to that, it would be amazing. This is already a championship team, to add to that would just be unbelievable."
Toledo has been on a roll this season behind the efforts of sophomore guard Ryan Rollins and senior JT Shumate as it currently sits atop the MAC with an 11-2 conference record and a 19-5 overall slate.
Winning the MAC Tournament will give the Rockets an automatic berth to the NCAA Division I Tournament in New Orleans.
Toledo has never made it to March Madness since 1980, where it exited at the first round after losing to Florida State.
Edu's addition, if he can recapture his thunder from his rookie season, can only mean good things for the Rockets.
"AJ's one of the nicest guys and hardest workers I've been around," said Toledo coach Tod Kowalczyk. "He's had some bad luck. Structurally his knees are unbelievably strong, he's just had bad luck. I think all that bad luck is behind him so there's going to be a lot of fun days for him ahead."
AJ Edu is eager to get back in action.
The 22-year-old Edu has also matured a lot from the trials that he had to endure from those setbacks in his still young career and now, he's ready to move past those dark times and have a fresh start with the Rockets.
"It definitely doesn't get any easier every time it happens. It was pretty tough initially, but I have a good support system around me, good coaching staff, good family back home," he said after going through a pair of torn ACLs and a meniscus tear that tested his mettle not only as a player but as a person.
"It's not all sunshine and rainbows for sure. But my biggest thing is my faith. I trust in God's plan for me. I believe that everything happens for a reason and I believe that these injuries have made me grow as a person. It's made me not take anything for granted."
Edu will look to contribute in the final seven games of the MAC regular season, with the earliest being on Sunday (Manila time) at Northern Illinois.
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