Jamaal Tinsley

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Jamaal Lee Tinsley^[1] (born February 28, 1978, in Brooklyn, New York) is an American professional basketball player, currently playing point guard for the NBA's Indiana Pacers. Tinsley was drafted out of Iowa State University by the Vancouver Grizzlies with the 27th pick of the 2001 NBA Draft, and was immediately dealt to the Pacers on draft night.

[edit] Early years and college career

As a teenager, Tinsley developed his game playing streetball at New York City's legendary Rucker Park. Tinsley's streetball nickname is "Mel Mel The Abuser".^[2]

Despite never playing basketball in high school, Tinsley, a high school dropout, managed to earn his GED and took his talents to Mount San Jacinto College (MSJC), where he played for the Eagles under Coach John Chambers. During the two seasons he played at MSJC, Tinsley was the two-time Foothill Conference MVP (1998 & 1999) and the Eagles' career leader in assists and steals.^[3]

In two seasons, Tinsley led Iowa State, coached by Larry Eustachy, to two Big 12 Conference Championships. In his first season at Iowa State, Tinsley teamed with forward Marcus Fizer, who earned All-American honors, to guide the Cyclones to the Elite Eight of the 2000 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.

In 2001, after Fizer had left Iowa State to enter the NBA Draft, Tinsley received Second Team All-American and Big 12 Conference Player of the Year honors. That season ended in disappointment for Tinsley, as Iowa State, the No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament's West region, was upset by No. 15-seeded Hampton in the tournament's first round. He is a part of the only college team in history to beat Kansas four times in a row.^[4]

[edit] NBA career

Tinsley was promptly thrust into the starting point guard position by Pacers coach Isiah Thomas, and performed very well for a month and a half before hitting a "rookie wall". Nevertheless, he put up admirable statistics of 9.4 points and 8.1 assists per game in 2001-02.

Tinsley played 73 games for the Pacers in 2002-03, starting 69 of them, and his averages dipped to 7.8 points and 7.5 assists per contest.

The following year, Rick Carlisle replaced Thomas as the Pacers' head coach, and immediately promoted veteran guard Kenny Anderson to the starting point guard slot, with Anthony Johnson as his backup. Tinsley was inexplicably relegated to playing backup for the backup.^{[citation needed]}

But when Anderson and Johnson went down with injuries, Tinsley regained his status as a starter, and he seemed to have a newfound energy and confidence in his game. Tinsley never relinquished his starter's role after that, and performed well as the Pacers advanced to the 2004 Eastern Conference Finals.^{[citation needed]}

Tinsley spent the majority of the 2004-05 season on injured reserve, but the battered team clawed and scratched its way to a 44-38 record and the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference. Tinsley missed the first four games of the Pacers' first-round series against the Boston Celtics, but made a stunning return in Game 5 to lead his team to a crucial victory.^{[citation needed]}j

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• NBA.com Profile - Jamaal Tinsley
• Jamaal Tinsley Statistics at Basketball-Reference.com
• Jamaal Tinsley Iowa State Profile