Trae Young’s continued impact at OU is turning into something fans can’t ignore

Whether it's stepping up as assistant general manager for Oklahoma's men's basketball program, or filling seats to watch the women's team, NBA All-Star and OU legend Trae Young finds any means possible to benefit both of the Sooners' basketball programs.

OU announced on Saturday that Young bought 150 tickets that fans can get for free at the Young Family Athletic Center in Norman to watch the No. 4 seed OU women take on No. 5 Michigan State at 7 p.m. CT Sunday at Lloyd Noble Center in the second round of the NCAA Tournament with a spot in the Sweet 16 on the line.

Trae Young donates tickets for Sooners' NCAA Tournament game vs. Michigan State

Young did the same thing just a few days ago for the Sooners' first-round game against No. 13 Idaho on Friday night. He also did it last year when OU earned hosting rights as a top-4 seed, so it's starting to become an annual tradition for the Sooners to earn home-court advantage in the NCAA Tournament and Young to make sure it's the best atmosphere possible.

The home-court advantage has only benefited the Sooners so far. They hammered Idaho 89-59 in front of 6,345 fans despite the game not tipping until after 9 p.m. in Norman. That blowout set up the matchup with Michigan State, and a win Sunday would send the Sooners back to the Sweet 16 after they used home-court advantage last year to also get that far.

Young was a consensus First-Team All-American and Wayman Tisdale Award winner while leading college basketball in scoring and assists as a freshman in his lone season in crimson and cream. He then moved on as a first-round 2018 NBA Draft pick to begin a pro career that has included four NBA All-Star selections so far. 

Hailing from Norman, though, Young has made sure that season wasn’t his only contribution to the Sooners. 

Last spring, he took a role as assistant general manager of the men’s basketball program while also donating $1 million to help head coach Porter Moser get more talent for the Sooners. He’s also active on social media in boosting both programs. 

The Sooners couldn’t dream of a better ambassador for both basketball programs than Young that fans can't appreciate enough.