Preseason All-American point guard Jamaal Tinsley’s past is well-documented. However, few ISU fans know what makes the senior point guard tick, how he feels about today’s athlete and what he sees as the biggest obstacles faced by inner-city youths who are in the same position he was just a few years ago on the streets of Brooklyn, NY. On the court, Tinsley is a tenacious player and a vocal leader. But off the court, he is a humble and reserved person who has put his past behind him and looks toward the future for a fulfilling life and promising career.JG: Why did you want to come back to Iowa State for your senior season?JT: College is fun to me, and the NBA is a business; it’s something that I don’t think I was ready for yet.JG: How do you handle all the pressure and expectations placed upon you by people?JT: To me, it’s not pressure. My life is pressure, and my background is pressure. This isn’t pressure. This is something I like to do, so I don’t look at it as pressure.JG: How have Coach Eustachy and everyday life in Ames changed you as a person?JT: It helped me out a lot knowing that he told me when I came up here to visit, that this is a little town and it’s like the pros here – everybody knows who you are. It has basically helped me out not being in a big environment or a big city where there’s a lot of trouble. It helps me stay low-key and stay focused.JG: What did you think about Iowa before you came here?JT: I never heard of Iowa until I started getting letters and getting recruited.JG: What did you think about your experiences overseas this summer?JT: It was good. I got to play with all the guys from the Big 12 on the same team. We were a good team with a good coaching staff. It was just a lot of fun meeting some guys from other teams.JG: I’ve read a lot about your past. What made you want to get up and change your life one day?JT: I just got tired of doing the same thing. I know that’s still gonna be there, and I just took advantage of some opportunities.JG: What do you think is the biggest obstacle facing inner-city kids who are in a position like you were?JT: Well, I can’t speak for everyone else. But mostly, kids don’t want to do it, or they don’t have anyone getting on them to make them do it, and some people just have to learn that on their own. And that was my problem — I had to learn it on my own.JG: What advice would you offer to someone that is in a similar position as you were?JT: I would tell kids that they need school and should take advantage of it. Kids these days just need help, someone in their corner who will help them out, tell them the right things and not the wrong things, and not lead them in the wrong direction. Mostly, kids don’t have that mentor, and that’s how it was for me. My father passed away, so it was kind of hard for me to listen to my mom. Even though she’s my mom, she’s not a man and can’t relate to what’s going on. For kids growing up now, I would tell them to stay with it and just do the right thing.JG: You’re a sociology major. What’s your favorite class?JT: I took it last year. It was Sociology 302. It was just about social stratification and the different levels of society. It was just a fun, interesting class.JG: What do you like to do when you’re not playing basketball?JT: I like to sleep and watch TV. I just like to rest when I’m not busy.JG: Who’s in your CD player right now?JT: Jay-Z all the time, Roc-a-fella, Hot Boyz, Cash Money.JG: What’s your favorite food?JT: My favorite food is macaroni and cheese. You can’t beat that with a baseball bat. JG: Do you make it by yourself?JT: I try, but I can’t do it like my moms does it. She came up here recently, and I had her make a big pan of macaroni and cheese for me. I’ve still got some, but I don’t like eating leftovers.JG: What do you think about pro athletes today and their salaries?JT: I can’t knock ’em. If they’re going to pay you all that money, you gotta take it.JG: What was it like playing at the famous Rucker Park?JT: Rucker’s just entertainment. It’s just flashy and real creative stuff. You just go put on a show for people. In the summertime, I play up there, but most of the time I play at 405 – that’s in my part.JG: Do you think your game would be different had you played in high school?JT: I don’t regret anything about the route I took. My game would be the same, and I would still be able to play like this.JG: What do you think sets you apart from other point guards?JT: For being a point guard, I think I’ve got good size. I’m creative with the ball and quick; that’s the advantage for me.JG: What is it about your game that makes you turn it up in the second half?JT: It’s not me turning it up in the second half, that’s just when I think I need to score. Some games I think I need to score in the first half, but I just play how I think my team needs me. I try to play a role too. Even though everybody knows who I am, I still try to play a role on the team.JG: How do you go from playing pickup ball to the college game where there are all these time-outs? Does that bother you when you’re playing?JT: It doesn’t bother me. This game just means more to me knowing everything I put in in the offseason – running, line drills, practice, waking up at six o’clock in the morning. Playing street ball, I don’t wake up that early. I wake up when I want to wake up and go and play in games, so it doesn’t really mean anything to me. This [college basketball] means a whole lot to me. JG: You’re 117-22 in your college career. What’s your feeling when you actually lose a game?JT: Every game I approach, I want to win. I’m not a loser, I’m not a sore loser, but I hate losing. There’s a difference between a sore loser and just a loser. I was just brought up always to win in whatever you want to do and achieve.JG: When you get drafted, and if you get drafted early enough, how do you think you’ll handle possibly playing for a losing team?JT: Right now, I don’t want to talk about that. I just want to focus on this right here. JG: Where do you want to be ten years from now?JT: Ten years from now I want to make sure my mom’s all right, but first of all I’ve got to make sure I’m all right before anyone else. I just want to have a happy life and be successful in whatever I do. Basically, I just want to have fun.JG: Where do you want to be ten minutes from now?JT: I’m about to go to bed ten minutes from now, as soon as I get home.JG: Is there anything you think people should know about you?JT: I just like to play basketball. People are going to judge me anyway, whether they know me or don’t know me. And they’re going to say things that aren’t true, but I can’t knock them for doing what they’re going to do. People that don’t know me, get to know me. Sit down and talk to me before you judge me.