Phoenix Suns assistant coach Kevin Young has been hired as BYU's head coach, sources confirmed to Yahoo Sports' Jake Fischer.
Young will fill the vacancy left by Mark Pope, who left BYU to replace John Calipari at the University of Kentucky. Calipari left Kentucky to take a job at Arkansas State. Young, a Salt Lake City native, returns to Utah, where he began his coaching career in the United States in 2007 as an assistant at Utah State University.
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Young will continue to coach the Suns through the NBA playoffs. The Suns earned the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference and begin a first-round series against the No. 3 seed Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday. According to reports, Young plans to begin assembling BYU's staff immediately to begin the recruiting process.
Young, 42, spent eight seasons as an assistant coach in the NBA. He coached the Philadelphia 76ers for five seasons from 2016 to 2021 and joined Monty Williams' staff in Phoenix as associate head coach in 2021. He continued in his role with the Suns after Frank Vogel took over as head coach this season.
Before coaching in Philadelphia, Young spent eight seasons as a coach in the NBA G League. After his one year stint at Utah State University, from 2008 he worked as an assistant at Oxford University until 2009.
Young took over BYU's program, which finished fifth in the Big 12 in his first season and entered the NCAA Tournament as a No. 6 seed. This is BYU's second bid for the tournament in the past nine years.
Young was reportedly considered for multiple job openings during this hiring cycle. Wojnarowski said he also interviewed with the Charlotte Hornets and Brooklyn Nets.
