At the beginning of Crazy Rich Asians, NYU economics professor Rachel Chu (Constance Wu) is invited to Singapore by her boyfriend Nick Young (Henry Golding) to meet his family at the wedding of one of his best friends. Rachel accepts, and no sooner is she at the airport with loads of leftovers for the long flight than Nick whisks her away to the airline’s bougie first-class lounge, where leftovers are extremely not needed. When pressed on all of this extravagance, Nick says his family is “comfortable,” which is a very low-key way of explaining that he’s part of the wealthiest family in Singapore.
The way Nick Young nonchalantly describes being one of the richest people on the planet—this from a guy who, as Rachel says, also borrows her Netflix password and plays pickup basketball at a smelly YMCA—demonstrates how he carries himself with a certain swagger. In that respect, he is a lot like another Nick Young, the one from the NBA—though, almost assuredly, Movie Nick Young is far less deadly from behind the arc at the Y than Swaggy P is at the Oracle.
But when you think about it, aren’t these Nick Youngs both idiosyncratic and kind of similar? They share a love of basketball, have millions of dollars to their name, dress fashionably, and are both fond of delivering memorable one-liners. The last detail is why I decided to create a little quiz: a Who Said It? between the Nick Young of the big screen and the Nick Young who once celebrated a 3-pointer that rimmed out. (For this exercise, we included Crazy Rich Asians’ Nick Young quotes from both the film and Kevin Kwan’s novel of the same name.)
Let’s begin:
The Nick Young Quiz
Guess who said it: Crazy Rich Asians Nick Young or Golden State Warriors Nick Young.
1. “I’ve came a long way, haven’t I? From getting snitched on, to putting a ring on.”
2. “The universe has spoken. It wants you over there.”
3. “Yes, I am aware that even now dark forces are trying to sabotage me.”
4. “I leave a presence. I’m like Michael Jackson, Prince, all those other guys.”
5. “I threw a single punch, I fell on the floor, and the guy sat on me.”
6. “He was a little friendly, kissing her and stuff. He was trying to take my woman.”
7. “Everybody needs to do cocaine.”
8. “I think I’ve had enough with dumplings for the rest of my life.”
The Nick Young Answer Key
1. “I’ve came a long way, haven’t I? From getting snitched on, to putting a ring on.”
Who Said It? We wanted to open things with a bit of a gimme: This is from NBA Nick Young, after winning a title with the Golden State Warriors this past season. While Crazy Rich Asians Nick Young does deal with a lot of gossip from socialites and family members back in Singapore, and while there is some snitching afoot, he never says anything this cheesy. Furthermore, there is no D’Angelo Russell equivalent in the Crazy Rich Asians universe. Also, that Nick Young would never cheat on Rachel—no offense, NBA Nick Young.
2. “The universe has spoken. It wants you over there.”
Who Said It? This is from Crazy Rich Asians Nick Young, said while convincing Rachel to travel with him to Singapore for his friend’s wedding at the beginning of the film. However, I genuinely feel like there’s an alternate reality where NBA Nick Young says this in a press conference to explain why he joined the Warriors, referring to himself in the third person.
3. “Yes, I am aware that even now dark forces are trying to sabotage me.”
Who Said It? This is from Crazy Rich Asians Nick Young: book edition. The trip to Singapore is filled with obstacles for Rachel and Nick’s love, and discussion about how the bonds of family responsibility could irreparably separate them. This is a tough one, though: The “dark forces” mentioned here could easily refer to any play drawn up by Steve Kerr that requires NBA Nick Young to pass the ball to a teammate.
4. “I leave a presence. I’m like Michael Jackson, Prince, all those other guys.”
Who Said It? NBA Nick Young, ever an Irrational Confidence Guy. While Crazy Rich Asians Nick Young most certainly has a presence, he is not the kind of guy to be so forthright about it. Instead of comparing himself to Prince or the King of Pop, he’ll fly with his best friend to a remote island to chill out and get away from a bachelor party taking place on a shipping vessel in international waters (a very real thing in Crazy Rich Asians, and something NBA Nick Young would certainly be very envious of).
5. “I threw a single punch, I fell on the floor, and the guy sat on me.”
Who Said It? This was NBA Nick Young recounting a locker room tussle he had with Kendrick Perkins and—OK, I’m kidding, unfortunately. This is Crazy Rich Asians Nick Young talking about a very lame fight he had as a kid. I just really wish this happened in the NBA—it would put the Clippers-Rockets Lockergate to shame.
6. “He was a little friendly, kissing her and stuff. He was trying to take my woman.”
Who Said It? Amazingly, this is NBA Nick Young referring to [squints] a dolphin that was in the water with his then-girlfriend, rapper Iggy Azalea, during a vacation in Mexico. Young insists that the dolphin tried to drown him, which is hilarious—and also a bit terrifying. Thankfully, nobody was trying to take Nick Young’s woman in Crazy Rich Asians, and there were no attempted murders by dolphin, either.
7. “Everybody needs to do cocaine.”
Who Said It? ... NBA Nick Young, but he was just joking!
8. “I think I’ve had enough with dumplings for the rest of my life.”
Who Said It? As Crazy Rich Asians Nick Young explains in the movie, his grandmother wanted to pass along traditions to the next generation, so she made Nick and his siblings learn how to make dumplings from scratch. It actually looks quite tedious, so I guess that’s why he’s become anti-dumpling, though I still disagree with what he said on principle. NBA Nick Young has never been asked about dumplings—someone tell Ethan Strauss to ask NBA Nick Young about dumplings.
So, how did you fare? While some of the quotes might’ve stumped people, because both Nick Youngs have a flair for the dramatic (see: “dark forces are trying to sabotage me” and allegedly murderous dolphins), there are certainly some ways to discern between them. Just remember: Basketball Nick Young is pro-cocaine, and Mega-rich Boyfriend Nick Young is anti-dumplings. Of course, if we get ever a Crazy Rich Asians sequel, we need the Nick Youngs to share the screen. Perhaps in a pickup game?
