Slam's Amaya participating in exhibition tour of China with NBA talent
October 9, 2014 - International Basketball League (IBL)
Bellingham Slam News Release
BELLINGHAM, Wash. - It has been a year to remember for the Bellingham Slam's Tyler Amaya.
Amaya is currently touring China alongside former NBA star Tracy McGrady, who is headlining a squad called the USA Legends and playing exhibition games against Chinese Basketball Association teams this month.
The team is being coached by former NBA guard Mike McGee, who won two league titles with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1982 and 1985.
In all, Amaya is scheduled to play 12 games in 12 different Chinese cities over the next three weeks. The tour has already made headlines after McGrady hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer in the team's first game, a 110-109 win over Jiangsu.
Amaya's inclusion in the tour comes after a remarkable spring and summer for the 6-foot-6 forward from Mount Vernon.
After Rob Ridnour's abrupt departure as head coach of the Slam a month before the start of the 2014 season, Amaya stepped in to the role and provided a seamless transition as the team won its third consecutive International Basketball League Championship in June.
Along the way, Amaya resurrected his playing career, returning to the court to play competitively for the first time after injuries sustained overseas had sidelined him for over a year. He proved to be an invaluable contributor down the stretch for Bellingham, averaging 20 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists and posting a 7-0 record in games in which he served as a player-coach.
Amaya's inclusion in the USA Legends tour is hardly his first brush with NBA talent. In 2009, he was invited to take part in a pre-season workout with the Houston Rockets. More recently, this summer Amaya participated in the Seattle Pro-Am league, where he competed alongside local NBA stars Jamal Crawford, Spencer Hawes and Isaiah Thomas.
Amaya has been a fixture in the region's basketball community for well over a decade. In 2001, he led Mount Vernon High School to a 3A state championship before accepting a scholarship to play at Gonzaga. He eventually transferred to Western Washington, where he helped the Vikings to back-to-back appearances in the NCAA-II West Regional Tournament in 2005 and 2006.
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International Basketball League Stories from October 9, 2014
- Slam's Amaya participating in exhibition tour of China with NBA talent - Bellingham Slam
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