He May be “Young”, but He’s Ready

Ivan McDowell
Southeast/MidSouth Editor

Andre Young, a floor general out of Albany, GA, is being recruited by SEC and ACC schools.

July 17, 2006 - Although small in stature, Georgia Blazers point guard Andre Young is a “big” reason for the Georgia Blazers success.

Standing at a mere 5’9 and weighing roughly 180 pounds, Young is the heart and soul of Tony Adams’ talented AAU/travel team hoops squad.

“If he doesn’t score, we don’t win, period”, lamented Adams, whose team participated in the recently completed Nike Peach Jam.

The Blazers reliance on Young for scoring, defense and ball distribution was evident during their initial contest versus the Charlotte Royals, in which the diminutive one scored a respectable eight points, had an assist and a board, but the Blazers shot a porous 32% and relied too heavily on the three-point shot.

The Blazers finished the invitational tournament with a 1-4 record, with their lone victory coming against a very athletic Alabama Challenge team.

“I have to let the game come to me. I tend to panic at times instead of just settling down and doing my thing”, remarked Young. The Blazers as a team seemed to panic, averaging more turnovers than assists.

The Albany, Georgia native has the skill set to do more in terms of scoring, but tended to defer to his teammates in the contest when what his team needed was his scoring ability.

Possessing the handle and quicks of a more experienced point guard, this rising junior can get to the cup at will and finish amongst the trees. If you lay off of him, he can bury the jumper, whether mid-range or from long distance. To varying degrees he displayed all of these abilities during the tournament.

High major schools are enticed by Andre’s poise on the floor, dribble-drive ability and his knack for hitting the open jumper.

SEC powers Georgia and Alabama have shown early interest, as has ACC giant Georgia Tech.

“It’s really early, but I’m feeling Georgia a lot right now”, exclaimed Andre.

It is apparent that Young has lofty aspirations and a drive to be the best at his position. In order for Andre to achieve those goals, however, he must become more assertive on the floor and believe that he must lead his team to victory.

I wouldn’t bet against it.