US Olympic basketball: Get to know Jackie Young, the WNBA’s Silent Assassin

Over the following week, SB Nation will be introducing each of the 12 members of the US Olympic Women’s Basketball team. Here’s what you need to know about Jackie Young, one of the best two-way guards in the world.

Fast Facts

Team: Las Vegas Aces (16-8)

Regular Season Stats: 18.5 points (44.6% FG), 5.6 assists, 4.7 rebounds

Position: Guard

Draft Class: 2019, Pick #1

All-Star Selections: 2 (2023, 2024)

Previous Olympic Appearances: 2020 Olympic gold medalist (3×3)

College: Notre Dame — won national championship in 2018

Jackie Young is an elite two-way player

Jackie Young is an undeniable offensive powerhouse. This season, Young is averaging 18.5 points and 5.6 assists – both career highs. She’s 9th in scorer league-wide and 7th in assists per game.

And, while she’s never made an All-Defense team, she was widely considered a snub last season. She had the third-best defensive rating in the WNBA (a 96.2), trailing only Sun center Brionna Jones and and Aces teammate Chelsea Gray.

“She should’ve been on the [All-Defensive Team] for sure,” teammate A’ja Wilson told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “She’s earned her way there. She’s one of the best two-way guards in our league. She guards the best guard every single night… and still performs and still produces on the offensive side.”

She finished her high school career as the all-time leading scorer in Indiana history

Jackie Young attended Princeton Community High School, where she finished as the leading scorer in Indiana High School basketball history with 3,268 points. She led her high school to 53 consecutive wins, and scored 36 points in the state title game.

In four years, she averaged an astounding state line — 30.8 points, 10.3 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and 3.5 steals — while shooting 58.3% from the field and 38.2% from downtown.

Nicknamed the ‘Silent Assassin,’ Jackie Young is known for her reserved personality

Young lets her game do the talking and is widely considered one of the more reserved stars in the WNBA. The Aces roster is filled with big personalities — like A’ja Wilson, Kelsey Plum, Chelsea Gray, and Sydney Colson — and Young’s quiet demeanor has stood out.

“When I came into this team, I said, ‘You’re the silent assassin for real,’” Gray said during last year’s Finals, per Yahoo Sports. “She’s a hooper, she’s a dog and I just love that she’s a two-way player all the time offensively and defensively. And you need that on your team.”

In 2022, Aces coach Becky Hammon told Winsidr a goal of hers was to push Young to be more vocal and more readily share her basketball knowledge with her teammates.

“What I’ve really tried to do is encourage her to talk,” Hammon said. “I need her to use her words because she knows what she’s doing! Like, share some of that knowledge! I challenged her early on to do more talking, and I think she’s coming into her own. This is her time.”

She was a last-minute addition to the 3×3 team at the last Olympics

When Katie Lou Samuelson tested positive for COVID ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic games, Young stepped in in her place. She got the unexpected call while vacationing in Florida, and headed overseas to join Stefanie Dolson, Kelsey Plum, and Allisha Gray. Team USA ultimately won gold, with an 18-15 win in the championship game over Russia.

Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images

“There were some scary moments when we heard about it,” Dolson said at the time of Samuelson’s COVID diagnosis. “But when we found out Jackie was coming – she’s an amazing defender, she can pass the ball, she has great composure, and she (showed) all that.”

Young ultimately helped the three-on-three team to an 8-1 record and an Olympic gold.

“It’s crazy to think about,” Young said after winning gold, per USA Today. “Ten days ago, I was on vacation. My life changed like that. Now I’m a gold-medalist. It’s crazy how things work out.”