Draft Profile: James Young

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James Young was a top 10 recruit coming out of high school last year but made his national splash during the NCAA tournament. He played well throughout the tournament but shined during the team’s Final Four games, averaging 18.5 points per game and 6.0 rebounds per game while shooting 41.7 percent from the field, 50.0 percent from long range and 85.7 percent from the free-throw line. He was Kentucky’s best player in the championship game, scoring a team-high 20 points. No one else on the roster scored more than 10.

Young is an interesting prospect. He was highly touted coming out of high school but didn’t get a ton of national recognition as he joined a stellar freshman class at Kentucky. However, he played very well as a freshman and got better as the NCAA tournament wore on. One of the most promising traits a player can display during a tournament run is how well he deals with the bright lights. This guy got better and better as the lights got brighter and brighter. Young is a left-handed shooter, and a confident one at that. He fired up nearly six 3-pointers a game during his lone season with the Wildcats. That number is both intriguing and troublesome to me. Most importantly, I think it shows the confidence he has in his own shot and the confidence his team and coaching staff had in his shot. However, film also indicates that his shot selection is questionable. I like the way the ball comes off his hands and how soft it is when it hits the rim. I believe his shot will continue to improve if he puts in the time and repetition when he gets into the league. Young has some very important offensive tools outside of his ability to make jumpers. He has a quick first step, a quick release and finishes pretty well around the basket (he’s got a nice touch on his left-handed floater). He uses his strength to create space on offense. That’s always a good thing to see out of an 18-year-old whose body is still developing. He does need to work on his handle. Young isn’t a guy who you’d want running your fast break. He does not like to dribble with his right hand and that will need to change. He also needs to play smarter on defense. He’s a ball-watcher and oftentimes puts himself and his team in a bind because of it. He needs to learn to stay in correct position and watch both his man and the ball. It would also be nice to see him play as physically on defense as he sometimes does on offense. Young has the athletic ability, length and shooting ability to become a very good NBA player. He can make an impact early on with his shooting, and as his game continues to develop that impact should become even more prevalent.

Young was born on Aug. 16, 1995 in Flint, Mich. He is the son of Tiplance Vernon. He grew up in Michigan and wound up attending multiple high schools. He put up some incredible statistics at both Troy High School in Troy, Mich. and Rochester High School in Rochester Hills, Mich. Young played at Troy through his junior season, when he averaged 25.1 PPG, 10.5 RPG and 4.5 APG. Those numbers spiked all the way up to 27.2 PPG, 16.0 RPG and 5.7 APG as a senior at Rochester. Those final two high school seasons left Young ranked as the eighth player on the ESPN 100 list last year. He also was selected to play in the McDonald’s All-American game. He was recruited most heavily by Kentucky, Kansas, Michigan State and Syracuse. Kentucky, Kansas and Michigan State were his final three options, and he signed on with Kentucky on Oct. 11, 2012. Young joined an incredible freshman class at Kentucky that included five of the top nine national recruits. That crop of freshman wound up pushing the Wildcats to the NCAA championship game, though they fell to UConn. Young declared for the NBA Draft on April 17.