Celtics sign first round and 17th overall pick James Young

Hoops Rumors has confirmed the Boston Celtics have signed James Young, the 17th overall pick in the draft out of Kentucky:
The Celtics have announced the signing of James Young via a team release. They confirmed the signing of fellow first round pick Marcus Smart in the same communication. Boston nabbed Young out of Kentucky with the No. 17 pick in June’s draft after securing Smart with the sixth selection. The athletic sharpshooter is likely to receive a salary worth a tick above $1.674MM, as our chart of salaries for first-round picks shows.

Young scored a team-high 20 points in a losing effort for the Wildcats in the National Championship game against Connecticut. He was also named second team All-SEC as a freshman. On a Celtics team with a dearth of wing players, Young figures to get playing time right away. Some draftniks expected him to flirt with the top ten, which might bode well for Boston considering their recent draft history. Celtics GM Danny Ainge has landed players like Al Jefferson, Rajon Rondo, Avery Bradley and Jared Sullinger at similar stages of previous drafts. Young’s athleticism and polished jumper could make him a steal at 17.



Boston definitely could have used Young's shooting in summer league considering the Celtics were a combined 18 of 66 from three (27%) in their final two games.

It should also be noted, Young was part of the greatest recruiting class by the numbers in the history of college basketball.

However, his Wildcats started out slowly this season before making a spectacular run in the NCAA tournament ultimately falling to the University of Connecticut in the championship game.



This run included what was probably the best game of the tournament when Kentucky upended the previously undefeated Wichita State Shockers in the second round.

A game which was made extra enjoyable because it was commentated on CBS by UNLV legend Greg Anthony, one of the most insightful analysts in college basketball.

JY, who is represented by Jay-Z, came up huge in this win scoring 13 on 5-9 shooting (2-4 from 3).



Overall in the tournament the sweet shooting lefty Young shot an impressive 9-21 (43%) from deep and averaged 13.2 points per.

Follow Clint on Twitter @ClintCorey