Oklahoma Basketball: Trae Young’s choice is college basketball’s loss

Sensational freshman Trae Young will take his talents to the NBA after just one season with the Oklahoma Sooners.

The Trae Young show is over at the collegiate level. To the surprise of almost nobody, Young announced via ESPN that he was declaring for the 2018 NBA Draft.

There’s plenty of reasons for him to do so. He should be a high pick in the draft, cashing in on a lifelong dream. On an individual level, he’s accomplished as much as anyone in just a single, freshman season.

But it’s hard not to feel bittersweet about the decision.

When the 2017-18 college basketball season began, Young was nothing more than a name on a roster. In the list of star freshmen joining the collegiate ranks, he didn’t register.

His first few games were spectacular, but he didn’t start gaining recognition until Oklahoma’s fifth game of the season when the guard scored 43 points against Oregon. Less than a month later, he made history when he dropped 22 assists in a win over Northwestern State.

After that, his every move was tracked. For a while, he answered the call, dropping a combined 82 points in separate wins over TCU and 48 points in an overtime loss to Oklahoma State. Teams adjusted, though, and his play dropped from unbelievable to simply great for the rest of the season.

The national media gave him a lot of flack for coming back down to Earth, but Young was just a freshman. Next year, he would’ve made adjustments to the double and triple teams sicced on him in the latter portion of the season.

The excitement Young brought to the sport at a challenging time altered the perception of the entire season. College basketball needs players with infectious swagger who can take hold of the national zeitgeist, even if it’s only temporary.

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The sport will miss you, Trae Young.