‘Swaggy P’ is set to show the Philippines that he still got it.
Nick Young will play for Strong Group Realty Development in the 32nd Dubai International Basketball Championship.
“We are very excited to have a player like Nick Young on our team,” said Strong Group owner Jacob Lao. “We rarely see a high-caliber NBA player in our country.
“Personally, I can’t wait to see him as well because he’ll get a prove himself again and showcase his full style of play while representing our country.”
Young was the 16th overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, being selected by Washington.
In a colorful 11 year career, Young, besides playing for the Wizards, also had stints with the Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia, Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State, and Denver. He had a career scoring average of 11.38 points per game.
His last stint was with the Nuggets back in 2018, playing four games there before getting waived.
Young resurfaced a year ago when he played for unorthodox 3-on-3 league Big3.
The enigmatic guard also had a boxing exhibition against TikTok star Malcom Minikon last October.
Coach Charles Tiu said that during his talk with the 37-year-old guard, he vowed that he is laser-focused on keeping the Dubai title in the Philippines.
“Got a chance to speak with Nick a few weeks ago just to see how serious he was to play for our team. It was a nice chance to get to know him a bit,” said Tiu.
“He said he wants to prove he can still play and has been staying in shape. We are hoping he can still be the explosive scorer that we know him to be. We think the Filipino fans will love him.”