Recruiting Report: Charles Young (2018)
Denver East is typically a powerhouse and this year is no different as they have two big time players in University of Colorado commit Daylen Kountz as well as junior standout Kwane Marble. When you have two players of this caliber, it’s difficult to pay attention to other key contributors on the team that also lead the team to victories in various unmeasurable ways and a player that’s experiencing that is Angels guard Charles Young.
In his lone year with extended minutes on varsity he’s making the most of his opportunity as he’s a guy that makes plays on the defensive end as he plays the passing lanes as well as any guard in the state and also seems to have a ‘clutch gene’ as they call it as he seems to always make big plays when the team needs it most. He’s proving he doesn’t need to have the ball in his hands to be effective, but also can be counted on to set up and run the offense as well as use his playmaking abilities to hit the open man. Although his mid-season stats of 3.4 pts, 1.4 ast, 1.1rebs and 1.5 steals per game may not jump out of the window, his ability to change the outcome of the game in all of the ways that somehow go unnoticed is one of the many reasons I believe that a coach at the DIII-NAIA level would be willing to have a player like that on the roster contribute to their team.
As the season progresses, Charles has big expectations set forth for his team and himself. He said one of the things he needs to work on is knocking down the shots more consistently. With most teams focusing on Kountz and Marble, his knack for knocking down the open shot will have to be called on more.
“If I can make myself more of a threat on offense, it could help take some of the pressure of our other players,” said Young.
Charles isn’t only a basketball player, but he also runs track, which is easier to visualize when you see his speed. It helps him play the passing lanes better as well as overcompensates for the fact that at 5’7 he’s a smaller guard. Opposing players feel as if they have the upper hand once he defends them and quickly seem to realize that his speed and great hand-eye coordination can be used as an advantage once they put the ball down.
With the state tournament quickly approaching, Charles believes his team has what it takes to bring it home and win Coach Rudy Carey another state title.
One of the best things Charles said about playing with a D1 athlete like Kountz is work ethic. He said he gets to see what it takes to put himself in himself in a position to play at the next level, he said whatever the future holds, “he’s ready for.”