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T. J. Shorts

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T. J. Shorts
Shorts with Paris in 2024
No. 0 – Paris Basketball
PositionPoint guard
LeagueLNB Pro A
EuroLeague
Personal information
Born (1997-10-15) October 15, 1997 (age 27)
Irvine, California, U.S.
NationalityAmerican / Macedonian
Listed height5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Listed weight160 lb (73 kg)
Career information
High schoolTustin (Tustin, California)
College
NBA draft2019: undrafted
Playing career2019–present
Career history
2019–2020Ventspils
2020–2021Hamburg Towers
2021–2022Crailsheim Merlins
2022–2023Telekom Baskets Bonn
2023–presentParis Basketball
Career highlights and awards

Timothy Neocartes "T. J." Shorts II[1] (born October 15, 1997) is an American-born naturalized North Macedonian basketball player for Paris Basketball of the LNB Pro A and the EuroLeague. Standing at 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m), Shorts plays as point guard.

Shorts played college basketball for UC Davis where he was named the Big West Player of the Year. He started his professional career in Europe in 2019 with Ventspils and went on to play several one-year stints for different clubs. Shorts gained praise at the continent, winning the MVP award for the Basketball Champions League in 2023, and for the EuroCup in 2024.

Born in Irvine, California, Shorts became a Macedonian citizen and made his debut for the North Macedonia national team in 2022.

Early life

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Shorts was born in Irvine, California, and received his first basketball by his mother at age 4.[2]

High school and college career

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Shorts starred for Tustin High School but received no Division I scholarship offers, so he opted to go the junior college route. He played two seasons at Saddleback College and averaged 20 points per game as a sophomore before transferring to UC Davis.[3] On February 6, 2018, Shorts had 31 points, seven assists and four steals in a double overtime victory against Long Beach State after leading scorer Chima Moneke was suspended.[4] In a game against victory at Cal Poly on February 15, he recorded a triple double with 10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. As a junior, Shorts averaged 15.2 points, 4.3 assists and 2.0 steals per game. He shot .538 field goal percentage, ranking fifth in the Big West. At the conclusion of the regular season he was named Big West Player of the year and Newcomer of the year, the first player in conference history to receive both honors in the same season.[5]

Professional career

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Latvia (2019–2020)

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Following the close of his college career, Shorts signed with Ventspils of the Latvian-Estonian Basketball League.[6]

Hamburg Towers and Crailsheim Merlins (2020–2022)

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On July 30, 2020, he has signed with Hamburg Towers of Germany's Basketball Bundesliga.[7]

On July 9, 2021, he left the German team Hamburg Towers.[8] On July 28, Shorts signed with the Crailsheim Merlins.[9]

On June 11, 2022, the Crailsheim Merlins announced, that Shorts is looking for a new challenge for the 2022/2023 season.[10]

Telekom Baskets Bonn (2022–2023)

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On June 22, 2022, he signed with Telekom Baskets Bonn of the German Basketball Bundesliga.[11] On May 4, 2023, Shorts was given the Basketball Bundesliga Most Valuable Player award after leading Bonn to a first seed in the regular season.[12] On May 13, Shorts was also named the Basketball Champions League MVP of the 2022–23 season after he had led the team to its first-ever Final Four.[13]

Bonn won their first-ever trophy as they defeated Hapoel Jerusalem in the final, behind Shorts' game-high 29 points. After the game, he was named Final Four MVP, his third MVP award of the season.[14] Bonn guard T. J. Shorts won the Final Four MVP award, becoming the first player in league history to win both the season MVP and Final Four MVP award in the same season. He scored 50 points in his two games, setting a new record for most points by a player, formerly held by Kevin Punter (2018).[15] Shorts also set a record for most points in a final with 29 points.[16]

Paris Basketball (2023–present)

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On July 8, 2023, he signed with Paris Basketball of the LNB Pro A (BBL) on a two-year contract.[17] He was recruited by his Bonn head coach Tuomas Iisalo who had already signed with Paris.[18]

On February 17, 2024, the team won the Leaders Cup, which was the first trophy in Paris Basketball's club history. In the final against Monaco, Shorts recorded 23 points and 5 assists in a 98–93 upset victory; he was subsequently named the tournament's MVP.[19][20]

In the 2023–24 EuroCup, Paris had its best international season to date and reached the club's first European title. On April 9, 2024, Shorts was named EuroCup MVP as he was praised for leading Paris to a 20–1 record and having set a league-record for most assists in a season.[21]

On May 12, 2024, Shorts won the MVP Award of the LNB Pro A; the French league became the fourth league he was named the best player of. He also finished the season as the league's scoring champion.[22]

National team

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On October 31, 2022, Shorts was added to the roster of North Macedonia's men's national basketball team.[23]

Personal

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Growing up, Shorts was a fan of Chris Paul and he modeled his game after Tyrese Rice.[24] He wears number 0 as this refers to the zero scholarship offers he received after leaving high school, and again after leaving junior college.[2]

References

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  1. ^ Transition? Smmooooth as silk for Aggies’ T.J. Shorts II
  2. ^ a b [1]
  3. ^ Fader, Mirin (January 3, 2017). "Saddleback College's T.J. Shorts lights up the scoreboard". Orange County Register. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
  4. ^ Voisin, Ailene (February 6, 2018). "A suspension, a big shot and a viral dance: How UC Davis basketball stole the spotlight". Sacramento Bee. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
  5. ^ "Big West men's basketball All-Conference revealed" (Press release). Big West Conference. March 5, 2018. Retrieved March 5, 2018.
  6. ^ "TJ Shorts signs at Ventspils". eurobasket.com. October 30, 2019. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  7. ^ "TJ Shorts (ex Ventspils) is a newcomer at Hamburg". Eurobasket. July 30, 2020. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  8. ^ "TJ SHORTS VERLÄSST DIE HAMBURG TOWERS". hamburgtowers.de (in German). July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
  9. ^ Maggi, Alessandro (July 28, 2021). "TJ Shorts II signs with HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim". Sportando. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  10. ^ "HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim - Bester BBL-Offensivspieler geht – TJ Shorts II kehrt nicht nach Crailsheim zurück". hakro-merlins.com. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  11. ^ "TJ Shorts II ist der neue Bonner Point Guard". www.telekom-baskets-bonn.de (in German). June 22, 2022. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
  12. ^ "TJ Shorts named the MVP of the German BBL". Eurohoops. May 4, 2023. Retrieved May 13, 2023.
  13. ^ "MVP Shorts headlines BCL season seven award winners". FIBA.basketball. May 13, 2023. Retrieved May 13, 2023.
  14. ^ "On another level: Record-breaking TJ Shorts wins Final Four MVP award". Basketball Champions League. May 14, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  15. ^ "On another level: Record-breaking TJ Shorts wins Final Four MVP award". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  16. ^ "Telekom Baskets Bonn celebrate their first Basketball Champions League title". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  17. ^ "Mvp De La Champions League, T. J. Shorts Rejoint Le Paris Basketball". parisbasketball.paris (in French). August 2, 2023. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  18. ^ "TJ Shorts explains why he chose Paris, talks his height being a limit". basketnews.com. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  19. ^ "Paris Basketball upset Monaco in Leaders Cup". basketnews.com. Retrieved February 22, 2024.
  20. ^ "European basketball cups 2024: winners and MVPs". basketnews.com. Retrieved February 22, 2024.
  21. ^ "BKT EuroCup MVP, 2023-24: TJ Shorts, Paris Basketball". BKT EuroCup. April 9, 2024. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
  22. ^ "Trophées LNB 2024 : les lauréats en Betclic ELITE". Betclic ELITE (in French). May 13, 2024. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  23. ^ "Ти Џеј Шортс, најдобриот стрелец во Бундеслигата, ќе биде нов репрезентативец на Македонија! - КФСМ". Кошаркарска Федерација на Република Северна Македонија (in Macedonian). October 31, 2022. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  24. ^ Halickman, Joshua (August 11, 2023). "EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: TJ Shorts talks North Macedonia, BCL Championship, Paris & Tyrese Rice ahead of Israel clash". Sports Rabbi. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
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