Tinsley on Cover of ESPN

Under the title "Vandy Dandy," ESPN gives Tinsley front page treatment.

"ESPN 100 combo guard Brad Tinsley verbally committed to Vanderbilt over the weekend, according to the Nashville City Paper. Tinsley, who was released from his scholarship to Pepperdine, narrowed his decision to Vandy and Wake Forest. "After he visited Vanderbilt, he decided Wake was the only other school that had a shot at him," his father, Carl Tinsley, told the paper. "It was a matter of coaching staffs, players and the depth chart. Those schools are pretty similar. There's not a lot of difference between them."

ESPN's Recruiting Coordinator Joel Francisco knows why the talented Tinsley had over 20 offers after gaining his release. "He has improved since last year and is now a sure-fire division one point guard, although he's also an excellent scorer," Francisco said. "He played off the ball most of the time last summer, but now he appears to be very comfortable running the point. His point guard skills - most notably his decision making - have developed and he's always been an outstanding shooter. He is very good in the open court and has the ability to dish out some dazzling assists."

"He's a good athlete, but not great, as he struggled against quicker opponents during the spring and summer," Francisco continued. "In addition, he had a tendency to wear down late in games. In the half court set Tinsley is a great shooter with a smooth release, but he needs room to get it off and he has problems separating himself from defenders with the dribble because he's not overly quick. But he has a high basketball IQ and is one of the better competitors on the west coast. Overall, he should be a solid combo-guard in a motion offense, due to his prolific shooting touch and savvy."

Tinsley joins a recruiting class that includes fellow ESPN 100 signees Jeff Taylor (Hobbs, N.M./Hobbs) and Lance Goulbourne (Princeton, N.J./The Hun School) as well as Steve Tchiengang (Montverde, Fla./Montverde)."