Thaddeus Young

Thaddeus Young

Thaddeus Young defended by Nick Young
No. 21   Philadelphia 76ers
Forward
Personal information
Date of birth	June 21, 1988 (1988-06-21)
Place of birth	New Orleans, Louisiana
Nationality	American
High school	Mitchell Memphis, Tennessee
Listed height	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight	220 lb (100 kg)
Career information
College	Georgia Tech
NBA Draft	2007 / Round: 1 / Pick: 12th overall
Selected by the Philadelphia 76ers
Pro career	2007–present
Career highlights and awards
2008 All-Rookie Second Team
Stats at NBA.com

Thaddeus Charles Young (born June 21, 1988) is an American professional basketball small forward with the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Prior to his professional career, he attended Georgia Tech, where he studied management. He is 6 feet 8 inches (203 cm) tall and weighs 220 pounds (100 kg). His nickname is Thad-Yo or just simply Thad.

Young was drafted 12th overall in the 2007 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. He was signed by the team on July 11, 2007.

Early life and high school

Young was born to Lula Hall and Felton Young in New Orleans, Louisiana. His family moved to Memphis, Tennessee when Young was in the fourth grade. His father played basketball for Jacksonville University from 1976 to 1978, and was selected by the Buffalo Braves in the 8th round of the 1978 NBA Draft.

Young began playing varsity basketball in the eighth grade, and while attending Mitchell High School, he rose to the top of the high school player rungs. His athletic honors included being named to the all-state team three times, being named the TSSAA Class AA "Mr. Basketball" in 2005, being named the 2006 Tennessee Gatorade Player of the Year and being named to the McDonald's High School All-American Team. In 2006, he led Mitchell's basketball team to the TSSAA Class AA finals against Liberty Technology Magnet High School. As a senior, he averaged 26.9 points, 13.8 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 4.3 steals and 3.6 blocks per game. He was an excellent overall athlete at Mitchell who also excelled in cross country in his junior year. Young was an exceptional student at Mitchell who graduated with a 4.3 GPA. Coming out of high school Young was one of the most prized recruits of the 2006 freshman class.

College

Young was the youngest member of Georgia Tech's 2006 freshman class. Young finished his freshman season with averages of 14.4 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.2 assists. He shot a solid 47.8% from the field and an above average 41.9% from the three-point line.

College statistics

College	Year	GP	GS	MIN	SPG	BPG	RPG	APG	PPG	FG%	FT%	3P%
GT	2006-07	31	31	29.6	1.3	.4	4.9	2.0	14.4	.478	.749	.419

NBA career

Rookie season

On June 28, 2007, Young was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers as the 12th overall pick of the 2007 NBA Draft.

Throughout the beginning of the 2007–08 season, the Sixers played rookie teammate Jason Smith often, while Young did not play.

In his NBA debut on November 7, 2007, Young made his first NBA field goal at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in a 94–63 Sixers' win over the Charlotte Bobcats. Young finished the night with 6 points, 3 rebounds, and no assists.

Until General Manager (GM) Ed Stefanski was hired, Young did not play very often. After the trade of Kyle Korver, Young played more minutes and alternated with Reggie Evans in the starting lineup. Young averaged 8.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 21 minutes per game during 2007–08. His season high in points was 22 against the Milwaukee Bucks on March 9, 2008. He played a total of 74 games, starting 22.

Sophomore season

Young continued on his rookie season play by following with a sophomore season that currently features an increase in major statistical categories such as points and rebounds. Thaddeus Young was elected to play in the Rookie-Sophomore game in 2009 as a member of the Sophomore team.

In game 3 of the 76ers opening round playoff series against the Orlando Magic, Young made a game-winning shot with 2 seconds remaining to give Philadelphia a 2 games to 1 lead.

NBA career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2007–08	Philadelphia	74	22	21.0	.539	.316	.738	4.2	.8	1.0	.1	8.2
2008–09	Philadelphia	75	71	34.4	.495	.341	.735	5.0	1.1	1.3	.3	15.3
2009–10	Philadelphia	67	45	32.0	.470	.348	.691	5.2	1.4	1.2	.2	13.8
2010–11	Philadelphia	82	1	26.1	.541	.273	.707	5.3	1.0	1.1	.3	12.7
Career		298	139	28.2	.508	.338	.716	4.9	1.1	1.2	.2	12.5

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2007–08	Philadelphia	6	6	26.7	.480	.200	.857	4.5	.7	1.2	.0	10.2
2008–09	Philadelphia	6	6	38.2	.449	.417	.833	4.5	1.3	1.0	.2	12.0
2010–11	Philadelphia	5	0	25.4	.417	.000	.583	5.8	.8	.8	.2	11.4
Career		17	12	30.4	.444	.333	.750	4.9	.9	1.0	.1	11.2

See also

• 2006 high school boys basketball All-Americans
• 2006-07 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets men's basketball team

External links

• Thaddeus Young at NBA.com
• ESPN.com player page