Nick Emery retires from BYU basketball

According to posts on social media, Nick Emery has retired from BYU basketball.

“The day has come that I hang up the #4 Emery jersey,” Emery said on social media. “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.”

Once ranked 45th on ESPN’s top 100 high school basketball players list and highly regarded as part of the “Lone Peak Three,” a trio that also featured TJ Haws and Eric Mika, the former four-star recruit finishes his BYU career averaging 12.6 points and 2.9 assists per game.

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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! ??

A post shared by Nick Emery (@04nickemery) on Jul 23, 2019 at 9:37am PDT

A highly recruited prospect coming out of high school, Emery saw major success in his freshman campaign. Averaging 16.3 points and 3.5 assists per game, the Alpine, Utah, native also saw his name on the All-WCC Freshman Team and WCC-ALL Tournament team rosters, as well as finishing the season with the fourth-most 3-pointers in a single season in school history.

Emery’s early success at BYU was soon overseen by a slew of controversy, including a one-game suspension for punching Utah’s Brandon Taylor, which resulted in NCAA sanctions. Other sanctions, including a 9-game suspension at the start of the 2019-19 season, will likely shadow his career at BYU. The Cougars were forced to vacate 47 wins and a scholarship and were placed on a two-year probation because of illegal benefits that Emery received from boosters.

“My time here has been a rocky at times, but the good times definitely outweighed the bad,” Emery said on social media. “I’ve learned so many life lessons and this journey has been so rewarding.”

Emery returned to the court on Dec. 5, 2018, against Utah State, and an early steal followed by a made three-pointer made the Marriott Center erupt. Emery would go on to finish what would be his final basketball season averaging 6.1 points, 1.7 assists and 21.1 minutes of playing time, per game.

Emery tallied impressive totals as a Cougar. He finished sixth in BYU history with 199 made 3-pointers and tied the BYU single-game record with 10. He finishes his career with 1,173 career points and a career game-high 37 points twice.