Luke Adams April 16, 2024, at 2:26 p.m. CST
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Suns assistant head coach Kevin Young is scheduled to ink a long-term deal to take over as head coach of Brigham Young University’s men’s basketball program. Mark Pope, who accepted a job offer to succeed John Calipari at Kentucky, will be replaced by Young.
Wojnarowski claims that although Young will stay with the Suns during their postseason run, he will start assembling his coaching staff right away in order to pursue recruiting prospects to BYU. Young’s new contract is anticipated to be worth roughly $30 million over seven years, according to sources who spoke with Matt Norlander of CBS Sports.
In an official tweet, BYU welcomed Young to the program.
Young, a resident of Salt Lake City, served as Utah Valley University’s assistant coach in 2007–08. He coached in the G League for a number of seasons before joining the Sixers as an assistant in 2016–20 and spending the next four seasons in Phoenix.
After lead assistant Willie Green left for New Orleans in 2021, Young, who had previously worked for Monty Williams, was elevated to associate head coach. This past season, he continued to work for the Suns under Frank Vogel, earning the title of highest-paid assistant in the NBA.
After supposedly interviewing with the Rockets, Bucks, Raptors, and Suns in 2023, Young has purportedly been considered for an NBA head coaching position in recent years. He was reportedly a finalist for the Brooklyn position and one of the applicants that met with the Hornets this spring.
It’s probably no surprise that the Nets apparently chose to name Jordi Fernandez as their next head coach less than twenty-four hours before news of Young’s leaving for BYU leaked.
