Tyler Hansbrough

Tyler Hansbrough is a retired American professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels, where he was a consensus first-team All-American and National Player of the Year in 2008. Hansbrough was then selected by the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the 2009 NBA draft and played for the Pacers, Toronto Raptors, Charlotte Hornets, and Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA G League during his professional career. He was known for his toughness, work ethic, and intensity on the court.

I think Tyler Hansbrough had one of the more interesting careers the way he had one of the greatest college basketball careers but didn’t make much impact in the NBA. In many ways, it’s reminiscent of cross-time rival Christian Laettner only not as good. For all the grief Laettner gets for his NBA career many people forget he did make an All-Star team and play until he was 35 years old. Hansbrough had an NBA career but no other accolades.

I remember draft boards at the time projecting him to be picked in the 20s, it’s kind of amazing he was picked 13th in the first round by the Pacers in retrospect. By that point, most NBA teams had come around to the fact you want to take the younger player that has more room and time to improve. Hansbrough would turn 24 years old a couple of weeks into his rookie season. For all intents and purposes, he was a fully formed player. An undersized PF by NBA standards of the era, that couldn’t shoot the 3, and that relied on the bully ball in college. He did have more athleticism than most would have expected, but not great measurable.

Hansbrough was still great enough at the qualities he had to carve out a respectable career, but not one less typical of the level of college career he had as a multiple-time All-American, National Player of the Year, NCAA Champion. Hansbrough was the only four-time All-American. Just say that phrase is crazy as players weren’t even allowed to play as freshmen through the early history of college basketball. If you were that good in the 80s and 90s you went pro early with little more to prove. Hansbrough was unique in that he was never really highly projected by the NBA and stuck around in a time of one-and-done.

Hansbrough was already 20 years old the first game he stepped onto a college court as a “freshman”. This almost certainly contributed to his physical and game readiness immediately. Add in the “Psycho T” edge he had on the court to power is tough inside the game. Most would call him the most laidback in the locker room or the shy kid growing up.

Tyler Hansbrough is a former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is commonly known by his nickname “Psycho T” due to his intense playing style and aggressive demeanor on the court. Hansbrough is known for his skill as a power forward, and he played college basketball for the University of North Carolina before entering the NBA.

Hansbrough had a successful college career at North Carolina, where he was a four-time All-American and won the prestigious John R. Wooden Award as the nation’s top college basketball player in 2008. He was also a key player in North Carolina’s national championship team in 2009. After his college career, Hansbrough was selected by the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the 2009 NBA Draft with the 13th overall pick.

During his NBA career, Hansbrough played for several teams, including the Indiana Pacers, Toronto Raptors, Charlotte Hornets, and New York Knicks. He was known for his energy, rebounding, and scoring ability in the NBA, and he was recognized for his tough and physical style of play. After his NBA career, Hansbrough played professionally in China for a brief period before retiring from professional basketball.