Thousands of high school athletes dream of playing at a Division I school, but only a fraction of those athletes get the offer to.

Ames native Tamin Lipsey has done that without playing a high school basketball game.

Lipsey, a 6-foot-1 guard for Ames High in the class of 2022, announced on his Twitter account on June 16 that he had received a scholarship offer from the Cyclones.

Lipsey is only 14-years-old and because of that, Iowa State couldn’t offer him a scholarship until now because of the NCAA rules.

“For me, the recruiting process is just getting started, but I’m excited about it,” Lipsey said.

This is not the first time an Ames prospect has gained attention excelling at basketball at a young age. Ames High alum Harrison Barnes, an NBA Champion with the Golden State Warriors and now Dallas Mavericks forward, also gained a lot of attention while playing basketball in Ames.

Both Harrison and Tamin played for the All-Iowa Attack, an AAU Basketball team that travels around the country to play some of the best travel teams in the country in AAU tournaments.

“He is a fantastic athlete, can score against much bigger and faster athletes, and possess an outstanding basketball IQ,” said Ames High head coach Vance Downs.

Downs believes that there are some good things about athletes playing AAU Basketball at a young age, apart from simply getting noticed by college teams

Downs believes that AAU ball helps players improve year-round.

“Players like Tamin who have more experience playing AAU tend to be more prepared to play varsity basketball,” Downs said.

While coach Downs does recognize how talented of a player Lipsey is, he will not be giving him any special treatment because of how talented he is as a player. Downs says that everyone has to apply to the same rules, and that includes the talented freshman.

Lipsey’s classmates said that he has shown a great work ethic since he first picked up the game. Along with playing basketball, Lipsey also plays football in the fall and runs track and field in the spring and summer.

Lipsey is a three-sport athlete that has shown massive promise in each sport he plays at a young age. He excelled in track and field during middle school, and in the 2017 outdoor track season.

Lipsey won six USATF Iowa Association Junior Track and Field Championships, four Region eight Junior Olympic Championships and three National Junior Olympics Championships.

Already this season, Lipsey has won an Iowa Association Junior Track and Field Championship in the high jump with a leap of 21-feet, 7-and-1/2-inches, a personal best for the 14-year-old.

Lipsey’s parents were very excited about this and proud of him for getting this far at his age.

“Great job son, the hard work is paying off, with an offer from one of your dream schools,” Lipsey’s father, Rob, said to him after he received the offer.

His athletic prowess runs in the family. Lipsey has three sister: Phaedra, Amara and Teagan. 

Amara and Teagan have played for or are playing for the Little Cyclones’ girls basketball team.

Amara graduated in May and will be playing basketball at Kirkwood in the fall, while Teagan will be a junior at Ames. Phaedra participated in track and volleyball.

With this scholarship offer and the widespread interest from major conference teams that Lipsey is likely to receive, his family will be guiding him along the way so that he can be in the best possible position to succeed.

“We’ve had many conversations about academics, career goals, level of competition, and fit. As the process goes on I want to keep these in mind,” Lipsey said.

The next step for Tamin is to play high school basketball this winter for the Ames High Little Cyclones.

Downs believes that Tamin has a lot of room to grow as a player, but that he won’t single him out, saying that each of his teammates have something they need to improve on as well.

Lipsey isn’t close to his ceiling, according to Downs.

“I’ve coached him in AAU before, so I’ve had an up-close look at him. We are still learning about him but I think he needs to mature all parts of his game,” Downs said.

Lipsey plans on using the scholarship offer as motivation in the years to come.

“It’s a big confidence builder, but it doesn’t mean I can just stop working on what has got me here,” Lipsey said. “It makes me want to work harder.”