Michael Wayne Young (born January 2, 1961) is an American retired professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player. He had a 15-year playing career spent in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

(NBA) and overseas. He was most recently the director of basketball operations and performance enhancement at the

University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the university in Texas with over 47,000 students. Its campus, which is primarily in s ...

, his alma mater.
''Joseph Duarte, The Houston Chronicle''

College career

Young, a native Houstonian, played basketball at Yates High School and the University of Houston. With the Houston Cougars, he was part of

Phi Slama Jama Phi Slama Jama was a name given to the men's college basketball teams of the Houston Cougars from 1982 to 1984. Coined by former ''Houston Post'' sportswriter Thomas Bonk, the nickname was quickly adopted by the players and even appeared on team w ...

and was twice named to the

Southwest Conference The Southwest Conference (SWC) was an NCAA Division I college athletic conference in the United States that existed from 1914 to 1996. Composed primarily of schools from Texas, at various times the conference included schools from Oklahoma ...

First Team. He played in the 1983 NCAA Final, a loss to the North Carolina State Wolfpack, as well as the 1984 final, a loss to the

Georgetown Hoyas The Georgetown Hoyas are the collegiate athletics teams that officially represent Georgetown University, located in Washington, D.C. Georgetown's athletics department fields 23 men's and women's varsity level teams and competes at the National ...

Professional career

NBA and CBA

Michael Young was selected by the Boston Celtics with the 24th overall pick (1st round) of the 1984 NBA draft. He played in three NBA seasons: 1984–85 with the Phoenix Suns, 1985–86 with the Philadelphia 76ers, and 1989–90 with the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...

. He also played two seasons with the Continental Basketball Association's Detroit Spirit, where he was named the CBA's Player of the Year in 1986 after averaging 26 points per game.Bio from uhcougars.com Michael Young profile
, ''uhcougars.cstv.com''

Overseas

Young also played in the Philippines, Spain, Italy, France and Israel. In 1986, he led Manila Beer to the finals of the Philippine Basketball Association Open Conference, losing to the Ginebra San Miguel team led by

Billy Ray Bates Billy Ray Bates (born May 31, 1956) is a retired American professional basketball player. Bates played shooting guard at McAdams High in Mississippi and attended Kentucky State University. Bates played four seasons in the National Basketball A ...

. Young, however, won Best Import honors over the highly favored Bates. He would return the following year, this time with the Great Taste Coffee Makers, which he led to another runner-up finish to Tanduay Rhum, led by

David Thirdkill David Thirdkill (born April 12, 1960) is an American retired basketball player. He played in the NBA, and was the 1993 Israeli Basketball Premier League MVP. NBA career He was selected by the Phoenix Suns in the first round (15th overall) of th ...

. While with the French League's Limoges, he won the 1993 European Club Championship, the EuroLeague.

Post-playing career

Young concluded his playing career in 1998 before returning to the

. He spent one season as an assistant men's basketball coach and five years as Houston's strength and conditioning coach. He then became the director of basketball operations and performance enhancement.

Personal life

Young earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Houston in 2002. He and his wife, Tina, have five children: Michael Jr., Joe, Mayorca,

Jacob Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. J ...

and Milan Maria. Joe played college basketball for Houston and

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

and followed his father's footsteps to the NBA in 2015 as a member of the Indiana Pacers. His youngest son, Jacob, played at the University of Texas and Rutgers before also transferring to Oregon.

References

External links

*
College and NBA stats from basketballreference.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Young, Michael 1961 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American people African-American basketball players All-American college men's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in France American expatriate basketball people in Israel American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Spain American expatriate basketball people in the Philippines American men's basketball players Basket CRO Lyon players Basketball players from Houston Boston Celtics draft picks CB Valladolid players Detroit Spirits players Fabriano Basket players Great Taste Coffee Makers players Houston Cougars men's basketball coaches Houston Cougars men's basketball players Israeli Basketball Premier League players Lega Basket Serie A players Liga ACB players Limoges CSP players Los Angeles Clippers players Maccabi Givat Shmuel players Manila Beer Brewmasters players Pallalcesto Amatori Udine players Philadelphia 76ers players Philippine Basketball Association imports Phoenix Suns players Shooting guards Sioux Falls Skyforce (CBA) players Small forwards Viola Reggio Calabria players