<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">The moment Tarence Kinsey signed with the Grizzlies as a free agent last summer, the odds were stacked against him. Rookie free agents simply don't find roster spots on teams coming off a playoff season. That didn't stop him from busting his butt during the summer league, opening a few eyes along the way. But just before training camp, during a summer workout, rookie teammate Alexander Johnson caught Kinsey with an inadvertent elbow that wound up breaking his right eye socket. Kinsey refused to have surgery for fear that the missed time would prevent him from making the team. Instead, he donned a protective mask and went out and beat out Junior Harrington for the final roster spot. Kinsey has since had three surgeries on his right eye to try to keep his eyelashes from touching his eyeball. But none of that has slowed his drive to show his NBA worth. With the Grizzlies' woeful season winding down, Kinsey's determination is finally paying dividends. In the last week, interim coach Tony Barone, Sr. has made the 6-6 guard a regular part of his nine-man rotation. In the Grizzlies' past two games, Kinsey has averaged 18 minutes of playing time, including a career-high 21 minutes in the team's 117-112 overtime loss at Philadelphia. Don't be surprised if he continues to log those kind of minutes for the remainder of the season, continuing with tonight's game at Toronto. ''I think he's a really quality player,'' Barone said. ''Is he going to be a starter in this league? I don't know. But I think he's going to be a guy that you want on your team that can contribute meaningful minutes. And we're going to give him minutes as this year wears on.'' It wasn't long ago that not many thought Kinsey would be an NBA player, much less a contributor. As a senior, Kinsey was South Carolina's leading scorer last year, averaging 15.8 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists. He also helped lead the Gamecocks to back-to-back NIT titles. But Kinsey was bypassed in the draft and found himself in a fight for survival to make the Grizzlies' roster. ''Life is full of adversity,'' Kinsey said. ''You've got to overcome it one way or another. If you fall down nine times, get up 10 and keep pushing. At the end of the day, God wants everything to go perfect for you, so believe in Him and keep doing what you do. </div> Source
