Kevin Young, current assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns, has been named the new head coach at Brigham Young University (BYU), according to sources. Young will be taking over the position left vacant by Mark Pope, who recently left BYU to become the new head coach at the University of Kentucky. Young, who is originally from Salt Lake City, is returning to Utah where he began his coaching career in the U.S. as an assistant at Utah State in 2007.
Despite accepting the head coaching position at BYU, Young will finish coaching the Phoenix Suns through the NBA playoffs. The Suns are set to face the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round as the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference. Young will begin assembling his coaching staff at BYU immediately to kickstart the recruiting process for the upcoming season.
Young, 42, has extensive coaching experience with eight seasons as an assistant in the NBA. Before joining the Phoenix Suns, he spent five seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers and previously worked in the NBA G League. He has a background in college coaching as well, having been an assistant at Oxford College and Utah State.
BYU had a successful season under Pope’s leadership, finishing fifth in their inaugural season in the Big 12 conference and earning a No. 6 seed in the NCAA tournament. This will be Young’s first head coaching position at the college level, and he was reportedly considered for coaching vacancies with other NBA teams as well.