His name is Shorts, TJ Shorts.
The bustling top scorer from leaders Telekom Baskets Bonn is officially only 1.75 meters “tall”. But in his third BBL year, the smallest pro (alongside Ulm’s Yago dos Santos) is the hottest contender for the MVP title.
His numbers are outstanding: the man with the fancy for colorful shoes makes 18.1 points, 7.9 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game. But his value to Tuomas Iisalo’s (40) team cannot be expressed in statistics.
That was not always so! Because of his size, Shorts was often underestimated in his career. “I was always the underdog,” said the devout Christian in 2020 after moving to the Hamburg Towers.
That’s why he’s had the number “0” on his jersey since college. And above that his name.
The full name of the sunny boy from California is actually Timothy Neocartes Shorts II. Wait a minute! So where does the “J” come from?!
It happened in sports Nasty accident at Jessica Haller
Shorts explains, “When I was two and my sister was four, she couldn’t pronounce Timothy. So my aunt made me call myself TJ.”
By the way, Short’s mother’s name is – no kidding – Darlene Longshorts! “She’s my toughest critic,” says the bleached professional. “After every game, she sends me a message.”
Apart from his unusual name, the son also got a positive attitude towards life from her. Shorts: “She was a cheerleader. And I, too, always try to bring life to others.”
