BYU Guard Nick Emery announces retirement from basketball; BYU’s plan to fill remaining scholarship

BYU Basketball guard Nick Emery announced his retirement from basketball Tuesday morning. He made the announcement on his official Instagram account.

Here’s the full post: “The day has come that I hang up the #4 Emery jersey. Basketball has taught me more about life than I could have ever imagined. Playing for a university like BYU and playing with some of the best guys has been an incredible blessing. My time here has been a rocky at times, but the good times definitely outweighed the bad. I’ve learned so many life lessons and this journey has been so rewarding. I am at a point in life where I am happy with what I’ve accomplished with basketball and I’m ready to start the next chapter of my life with my wife and son. So I want to say thank you to my coaches, teammates and administration for all the memories and love.And a huge thank you to all of the fans who stuck with me through the good times and the bad times and cheered me on even in my darkest hours. I am a changed man from your unwavering support and love and I am forever grateful. Because of you guys, I was able to accomplish dreams I never thought would happen. Thank you BYU for the amazing opportunity to represent your school. I have been forever blessed!”

In his three seasons in Provo, Emery averaged 12.6 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.4 steals per game. His freshman season was his best of his career, which included a BYU freshman record of 97 threes made.

Emery went through a lot of ups and downs in his personal life, but he persevered and ultimately returned for his redshirt junior season in 2018-2019. He re-married this offseason and seems to be in really good place. We wish all the best to Nick and thank him for his time at BYU!

With the departure of Nick, BYU appears to have one vacant scholarship. The easiest path would be for BYU to give that free schollie to one of the walk ons — Colby Leifson, Blaze Nield, Evan Troy or Taylor Maughan.

However, Pope has stated multiple times this offseason that BYU needs a point guard of the future to replace TJ Haws. One option could be Arizona transfer Alex Barcello. Barcello is a former top 100 recruit who spent the past two years in Tucson. He averaged 3.5 points and just under 10 mpg this past season for the Wilcats. BYU has been in contact with Barcello, who could be the replacement for Haws. Barcello will redshirt this upcoming season and then have two seasons of eligibility remaining at whatever school he chooses.

Another big could also be in the mix, but the graduate transfer market is sparse at this point and BYU may not want another big for future years when Wyatt Lowell and Richard Harward become eligible.

Stay tuned to Vanquish the Foe for future transfer and roster news.