Joseph

Young

Young is the veteran on the Lakers Summer League squad and is tasked with running the show. He’s trying to find a spot back in the NBA after a season in China.

This isn’t surprising at all to see him go off after Young led Orlando Pro Summer League in scoring last year. Young threw down the early favorite for the best Summer League dunk, but he did hurt his back on the fall. Young stayed in the game, but he was grabbing his lower back at times. He’ll be fighting for his minutes in the second unit this season. The video of his jam is in the link below.

With a strong showing this summer, Young could earn the backup point guard role behind Jeff Teague with Ty Lawson set to become a free agent. Young averaged 3.8 points and 1.6 assists in 9.4 minutes per game as a rookie, but he could be looking at minutes in the teens next season. Young will be joined on the summer league roster by Georges Niang, Rakeem Christmas, Glenn Robinson III and Shayne Whittington.

The deal is reportedly for one year and it’s likely to be at or near the minimum, giving the Pacers a likely replacement for Ty Lawson. Brooks’ arrival would be bad news for Joe Young’s role next season, but neither guy is appealing in fantasy leagues while Jeff Teague is soaking up minutes at PG.

As expected, the Pacers have officially signed Brooks to a one-year, $2.5 million deal. Brooks will have to battle Joe Young for backup point guard minutes, so his fantasy value is extremely limited as long as Young and starter Jeff Teague are healthy.

Pacers’ summer league coach Popeye Jones acknowledged after the game that he shouldn’t have let Jones play through the injury during the fourth-quarter, and it would be far from surprising to see him sit out Tuesday’s meaningless game. He finished Sunday’s contest with six points, three boards, three assists and one block through 22 minutes.

Hamstring injuries tend to linger if you return too soon, so a 3-week absence seems like the most likely course of action here. C.J. Miles will be the primary beneficiary in Stuckey’s absence, with guys like Glenn Robinson III and Joe Young also having the opportunity for some increased minutes. Stuckey isn’t worth owning anywhere.

Young looked great during the summer league before he picked up a tailbone injury, but unfortunately the Pacers signed Aaron Brooks to be their backup PG. Young will likely be third on the initial depth chart, but could give Brooks a serious run for his money for the backup job.

Young was sick last week but that’s not the cause of his near DNP -- he played 13 minutes during the month of December and simply isn’t part of the rotation. Ignore him while Jeff Teague is healthy.

He’s not in the rotation anyways and has played a total of 13 minutes in December.