A feature on SJSU's Tim Pierce

Dave Newhouse is a San Jose State grad and a longtime sportswriter in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Life's now a slam dunk for Oaklander
Dave Newhouse:
Bay Area News Group
1/25/2009

The shortest work cycle is that of an athlete. You can be a letter carrier, teacher, chef, accountant, lawyer, doctor or entertainer forever, but an athlete doesn't have that luxury.

He or she could be a high school hero, then a college athlete if fortunate, and a professional if that person has attained elite status. But even the most gifted athlete is through by one's late 30s, early 40s, if he or she hasn't been cycled out much earlier.

That work cycle spins them in, then spits them out, with a new cycle of athletes waiting to take their place. So they had better have gained something constructive along the way, besides lofty statistics and All-America recognition, if the dream of becoming a pro athlete isn't realized.

Tim Pierce is a San Jose State senior, a 23-year-old from Oakland who's one of the best basketball players on campus. His exploits at Hercules High School, after transferring there from Fremont High, were herculean, thereby earning him a scholarship to Arizona State...

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