BARCELONA (AP) — Pau Gasol is going home, announcing Tuesday that he will sign to play with FC Barcelona again and rejoin the franchise with which he started his professional basketball career more than 20 years ago.

The Spaniard has previously said he wants to play in his fifth Olympic Games but that he needs to be playing this season to give himself a chance of making it to Tokyo.

Gasol is a six-time NBA All-Star, winning a pair of championships with the Los Angeles Lakers. The 40-year-old who was born in Barcelona last appeared in the NBA on March 10, 2019, for Milwaukee.

“I’m happy to return to the club where I began, and I’m excited about this new opportunity,” he wrote in a post on social media.

Earlier this week he had denied the move to Barcelona, saying he remained “focused on my recovery and I am not ready to get back to competing just yet.” His statements Tuesday made no mention of the Olympics.