 Young with theIndiana Pacers in 2018 | |
| No. 3 – Qingdao Eagles | |
|---|---|
| Position | Point guard /shooting guard |
| League | CBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1992-06-27)June 27, 1992 (age 33) Houston, Texas, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Yates (Houston, Texas) |
| College | |
| NBA draft | 2015: 2nd round, 43rd overall pick |
| Drafted by | Indiana Pacers |
| Playing career | 2015–present |
| Career history | |
| 2015–2018 | Indiana Pacers |
| 2015–2017 | →Fort Wayne Mad Ants |
| 2018–2020 | Nanjing Monkey Kings |
| 2020–2021 | Beijing Royal Fighters |
| 2021–2022 | Birmingham Squadron |
| 2022–2023 | Promitheas Patras |
| 2023 | Napoli Basket |
| 2023 | Changsha Wantian Yongsheng |
| 2023–2024 | Fujian Sturgeons |
| 2024 | Kuwait SC |
| 2024 | Shahrdari Gorgan |
| 2024–2025 | Fujian Sturgeons |
| 2025 | Atléticos de San Germán |
| 2025 | Beirut Club |
| 2025–present | Qingdao Eagles |
| Career highlights | |
| |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Joseph Michael Young (born June 27, 1992) is an American professionalbasketball player for theQingdao Eagles of theChinese Basketball Association (CBA). The son of formerNational Basketball Association (NBA) playerMichael Young,[1] he playedcollege basketball with theHouston Cougars and later theOregon Ducks. Young earned third-teamAll-American honors and was namedconference player of the year in thePac-12 as a senior with Oregon in 2015. He was selected by theIndiana Pacers in the second round of the2015 NBA draft with the 43rd overall pick.
Young attendedYates High School under Greg Wise, where he averaged 27.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.4 steals and 3.8 assists per game as a senior to help lead the Lions to a perfect 34–0 record and the No. 1 national ranking in final polls from USA Today, MaxPreps and Rivals.com. In the process, he was named to the Parade All-America Third-Team, the Texas Gatorade Boys’ Basketball Player of the Year and the Class 4A Texas Association of Basketball Coaches All-State Team. Yates ended up winning their second straight State Championship with Young winning the Most Valuable Player of the state final award.[1][2]
Young originally committed toProvidence, but was forced to sit out a season after fired head coachKeno Davis refused to release him from his letter of intent. He began his collegiate career atHouston, where his father was Director of Basketball Operations. As a sophomore, Young averaged 18 points per game and shot 42 percent from the three-point arc and 87 percent on free throws. After the season, his father refused reassignment at the University of Houston and left the program, and Young opted to transfer.[3] Young announced his intention to transfer to Oregon to play under coachDana Altman.[4] In 2015, he was named thePac-12 Conference Player of the Year after averaging 19.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game as a senior. He hit back-to-back game-winning shots versusArizona State andWashington.[5]
On June 25, 2015, Young was selected with the 43rd pick of the2015 NBA draft by theIndiana Pacers.[6] After leading the2015 NBA Summer League in scoring with 22.5 points per game and earning All-Tournament honors, Young signed a four-year, $4 million deal with the Pacers on July 14.[7][8] On December 11, 2015, he was assigned to theFort Wayne Mad Ants of theNBA Development League.[9] He was recalled by the Pacers three days later.[10] On December 27, he was reassigned to the Mad Ants[11] and recalled the next day.[12] On January 17, 2017, Young was assigned to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, Pacers'D-League affiliate.[13] He was recalled by the Pacers six days later.[14]
On August 1, 2018, Young signed a one-year deal withNanjing Monkey King of theChinese Basketball Association (CBA).[15] In his first career game with the CBA, Young recorded 23 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in a 91–118 loss to the Qingdao Eagles.[16] On November 15, 2018, Young recorded a career-high 51 points to go along with 9 rebounds and 2 assists in a 110–124 loss to theJilin Northeast Tigers.[17]
On June 27, 2019, Young was included in the2019 NBA Summer League roster of theLos Angeles Lakers.[18] He re-signed with Nanjing for the2019–20 season,[19]
On July 23, 2020, Young dropped 74 points against Shandong Heroes during one of the final regular season games in the CBA’s bubble en route to being named the league’s regular season scoring champion. Young marked the third-highest personal single-game scoring show in CBA history.[20]
On October 1, 2020, Young signed with theBeijing Royal Fighters of the CBA for an annual salary of $3.1 million. Young will be playing under former NBA All-Star and CBA legend, Stephon Marbury.
Young is coming off a career season where he averaged a league high of 38.3 points, 6.4 assists and 2.3 steals per game for Nanjing Tongxi Monkey Kings.[21]
On October 25, 2021, Young joined theBirmingham Squadron through a trade.[22]
On July 22, 2022, Young, according to his agentPete Mickeal, signed withPromitheas Patras of theGreek Basket League and theEuroCup, his first European club. On January 4, 2023, he parted ways with the Greek club. He averaged 16 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists in domestic competition, as well as 23.4 points and 3.9 assists in the EuroCup.
On January 5, 2023, Young signed withNapoli of the ItalianLega Basket Serie A.[23]
On July 4, 2024, Young signed withHomenetmen Beirut of theLebanese Basketball League.[24]
On September 30, 2024, Young signed with theFujian Sturgeons of theChinese Basketball Association (CBA).[25]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015–16 | Indiana | 41 | 0 | 9.4 | .367 | .217 | .800 | 1.2 | 1.6 | .4 | .0 | 3.8 |
| 2016–17 | Indiana | 33 | 0 | 4.1 | .361 | .217 | .733 | .5 | .5 | .1 | .0 | 2.1 |
| 2017–18 | Indiana | 53 | 1 | 10.5 | .430 | .379 | .759 | 1.2 | .7 | .3 | .0 | 3.9 |
| Career | 127 | 1 | 8.5 | .393 | .296 | .768 | 1.0 | .9 | .3 | .0 | 3.4 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Indiana | 4 | 0 | 2.5 | .375 | .250 | 1.000 | .3 | .3 | .0 | .0 | 2.3 |
| 2018 | Indiana | 1 | 0 | 3.0 | – | – | – | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 |
| Career | 5 | 0 | 2.6 | .375 | .250 | 1.000 | .2 | .2 | .0 | .0 | 1.8 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011–12 | Houston | 30 | 16 | 30.1 | .416 | .382 | .837 | 3.6 | 2.4 | .9 | .2 | 11.3 |
| 2012–13 | Houston | 32 | 30 | 32.8 | .458 | .420 | .875 | 3.5 | 2.5 | .6 | .0 | 18.0 |
| 2013–14 | Oregon | 34 | 34 | 31.1 | .480 | .415 | .881 | 2.8 | 1.9 | 1.3 | .0 | 18.9 |
| 2014–15 | Oregon | 36 | 35 | 36.7 | .448 | .357 | .925 | 4.4 | 3.8 | 1.1 | .0 | 20.7 |
| Career | 132 | 115 | 32.8 | .453 | .390 | .886 | 3.6 | 2.7 | 1.0 | .0 | 17.5 | |
The son of Tina andMichael Young, his father ranks as the third-leading scorer inHouston Cougars history and is one of five players to have his jersey number retired by the school. He majored in Sociology.[1][2] His younger brotherJacob played college basketball forTexas andRutgers before transferring toOregon.[26] Young andPaul George are fifthcousins.[27]
Young has remained involved in the Houston, Texas community and in 2019 donated 1,000 Thanksgiving Day turkey dinners to less fortunate residents of the city’s Midtown district.
