HOMEWARD BOUND
Trae Young goes old school in picking OU
NORMAN — Trae Young and his dad would sit up at night, sometimes past 2 a.m., talking about the future. Rayford Young knows a thing or two about big-time basketball, having scored 1,525 points for Texas Tech as a speed-demon point guard who was a direct contemporary of Eduardo Najera and Desmond Mason.
Rayford figures his job in the recruiting process was Devil’s Advocate. Think about this, think about that. Same as Rayford’s job in the decision a year ago, when the high school superstar was being pulled away from Norman North High School, to one of the basketball prep schools that now pollute the sport.
The last thing the father wanted was for his son to leave, “but I told him, ‘If you don’t go to prep school, you may not make McDonald’s All-American,’” Rayford Young said.
Sad commentary on the state of the sport, but true. The clearest path to high school stardom is to leave your school behind. The clearest path to college stardom is to join one of the basketball bluebloods — the likes of Kentucky, Kansas, Duke — that serve as a halfway house for the NBA.
But Trae Young stayed at Norman North. And Thursday, he stayed home again, reaching down to grab an OU cap that he put on his head, signifying he would sign a letter of intent to play basketball for the Sooners. The state’s most ballyhooed recruit since Blake Griffin 10 years ago is staying home.
Trae Young bet on himself and won — he made McDonald’s All-American and is considered one of the nation’s two or three best point guard prospects. Now Young is betting on himself again, picking a program that has its moments and was in the Final Four a mere 10 months ago, but a program that can’t match what Kansas offers.
The Jayhawks have unmatched tradition, the best venue in American sport and a winning pedigree under Bill Self that guarantees a Big 12 title and deep NCAA Tournament runs almost every season. Anytime anyone in this part of the country
doesn’t go to Kansas, I’m stunned.
But I’m also stunned anytime I come across a modern teenage superstar who talks about home the way Opie Taylor might talk about Mayberry.
“The deciding factor? This is just home,” Young said. “It’s always been home to me.”
What century is this kid from? Flanked by his family and sitting in front of a packed room of hundreds of friends, teammates, media and North staff, Young looked like the typical teenage phenom who was born in 1998. Young wore bright gold Air Jordans.
But then Young made us think that maybe he’s more about soul than sole. That the bling of the 21st century hasn’t penetrated his spirit. That Lon Kruger’s future point guard is quite Old School.
Trae Young plays hiphop basketball, barreling at full speed up court and launching shots from all corners of the court. But his musical preference is slowjams. “Oh gosh, New Edition is one of his favorites,” said Candice Young, Trae’s mother. “Pretty much any Old School R&B, he’s on it.
“He does have that Old School mentality of wanting to be close and wanting to be around the people that’s helped pour into him over the years, and really show them the joy in giving back to them.”
That’s not the only reason Young chose OU or stayed at North. But it’s a sign that he might not be the typical 18-year-old phenom. Loyalty is in short supply at the highest levels of all basketball. Jumping high schools. Leaving the state. Turning pro at the first possible moment. So far, Trae Young has broken the mold.
There were times when Candice Young thought her son would go to a prep school. There were times she thought he would pick Kansas.
“I was preparing myself for that,” Candice Young said, “because I wanted him to do what was best for him. So when he came to me and said, this is it, I can’t say I wasn’t over the moon.”
After those late-night chats between father and son, when Rayford Young warned his son he needed to leave to find the basketball glory of which he dreamed, Trae “looked me in the eye said, ‘Dad, I’m going to do all that and stay at Norman North.’ I’m just tickled to death. I get emotional thinking about it. Because he achieved all his dreams while staying here. He feels the same by going to OU now.”
The university just a few miles away was the pick of a kid who has proved he values home.