Back to the Assembly Line

After failing to make the Rocket’s squad out of camp in 2002, Tierre soon found himself with a chance to play minor league ball in the NBDL.

Brown ran with the opportunity and played in 44 games, averaging 15.7 points last season with the Lowgators. He also earned all-league honors and a callup to the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he appeared in 15 NBA games.

Though he participated in training camp with both the Atlanta Hawks and Golden State Warriors in 2003, Brown again found himself back with Charleston in the D-League this season.

Rather than being disappointed, Tierre remains motivated and has been making the most out of his situation this year.

Brown was named the NBDL player of the month for January and was rewarded with a 10-day promotion to the New Orleans Hornets.

“The stay was short but sweet,” acknowledged Tierre. "It was not right situation and I didn’t get too many minutes.

“I knew I had the ability to play there; it was just whether I was going to get the opportunity. Every coach (that’s let me go) has told me that it has nothing to do with my ability.”

The general consensus is that Brown just hasn’t found the right system that has allowed him to become a permanent member of an NBA team.

“He’s very skilled at the point guard position, handles the ball extremely well and has very good mid-range shooting touch,” states Chris Alpert. “I think it just a matter of time till he gets back into the NBA.”

Although Tierre has the tremendous ability to score, most NBA teams don’t need a guy to come in deep off the bench and score 25 points; they need someone that can distribute the ball.

“A lot of point guards need to improve their decision making,” admitted Alpert. “Tierre’s got great vision and he’s willing to distribute the basketball. He’s learning when and where to get the players the basketball in a position to score.”

Brown currently ranks second in the league, averaging 6.8 assists a game, despite the fact that this is only his 3rd season playing the point.

“A lot of people don’t know that when I made the Rockets out of college, it was my first time playing point guard,” divulged Brown, who played the shooting guard in college.

Everyone also agrees that Brown can improve his stock by continuing to perfect his long-distance touch.

“Tierre needs to improve his shooting range,” states Alpert. "He’s not a great NBA three point shooter, but I think if he improves his range a little bit he’ll be more attractive to NBA teams.”

A Polished Product

Ron Everhart truly believes that Tierre is already on the path to greatness, on and off the court, and the coach believes his former player has the ability to overcome any obstacles that may arise.

“I have tremendous respect and admiration for him as a person, forget about basketball,” stated Everhart. "As a coach, you almost get choked up talking about some of the things this guy is about. When you’re faced with such a prima donna, materialistic, world that some of these kids are living in, he’s kind of a throwback.

“He’s about hard work and dedicating himself to what he wants to do,” Everhart continued. “Nobody deserves success more than a kid like Tierre Brown.”

For his part, Tierre’s philosophy regarding his situation is very basic and easy to understand.

“I just go out there and play ball,” Brown said. “I don’t make it too hard on myself.”

Although he’s nowhere close to surrendering his ambitions, Tierre has a plan in the event his dream never comes to fruition.

“I’m close to getting my degree in business management,” Brown said. “I want to go back to where I went to school and open up a couple of restaurants.”

Coach Everhart believes with his work ethic and knowledge of basketball, Tierre would someday make a fine teacher of the game.

“I want him to know that whenever he finishes chasing his dream and playing, which hopefully won’t be for a long time, I always have a spot for him on my staff,” Everhart stated.

Don’t hold your breath coach.

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