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College sports are going through some big changes, and universities across the country are quickly trying to make adjustments to adapt to this new landscape. A big part of the adjustment period has been creating new jobs for different teams. For example, the Oklahoma basketball team has an assistant general manager position, and it is held by former Sooner Trae Young.
After the Oklahoma basketball team was eliminated in the NCAA Tournament this past season, Trae Young reached out to Sooners head coach Porter Moser. Young wanted to help the program, and his passion is what really stood out to Moser.
“It was evident, right when I got the job, when I met Trey, that his love for Oklahoma, his appreciation for the opportunity at Oklahoma, what he did here for the city of Norman,” Porter Moser told Andy Katz about how Trae Young got this position. “I mean, he's given back to the city of Norman with his facility here, which is a phenomenal facility, but it was obvious right out of the gate that he's got just a love and appreciation for Oklahoma and University of Oklahoma, and then then his love for us and following us. He had a break. We played at Georgia. He came over to the game. He's followed us.”
Oklahoma made a run to the tournament last season, but the Sooners were eliminated in the first round against UConn. Right after that, Young brought his idea to Moser.
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“It hit him after the tournament,” Moser continued. “I have the text. He texted me. He's like, ‘Coach, let's get together. Let's talk. We've got to take this to the next level.' It was just a passion right away. Literally, it was probably within, I don't even know if it's 12 hours after the UConn game, and then it just blossomed from there.”
Before Young became a star in the NBA for the Atlanta Hawks, he experienced being a student-athlete at Oklahoma. He will be able to relate to recruits and players, and that should be crucial for him in this position.
“I'm just going back and forth talking about this, and just has a real passion, and he also has an understanding of… if NIL is that kind of opportunity that young student athletes are going to look for, that it's going to be something, and we have to position ourselves to be competitive,” Moser said. “And he gets that. And that's why he wanted to jump in and help right away.”
Teams need to adapt to stay afloat in this new era of college athletics, and the Oklahoma basketball team is doing that. Trae Young is back with the program, and big things are in store for the Sooners down the road.
