JayVaughn Pinkston

JayVaughn Pinkston (born November 27, 1991) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for Villanova University.

Pinkston was selected to play in the McDonald's All-American Game during a stellar career at Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School. As a senior, he was selected to the Parade All-American second team. He was named New York's Player of the Year as a senior. He became the first player in Loughlin history to earn the honor of playing in the McDonald's All-American game.

Early life Pinkston was born on November 27, 1991, in Brooklyn, New York. She worked several jobs, including security officer, to support him as a single mother. JayVaughn suffered several bouts of asthma as a child.

High school career Pinkston attended Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School, where he played basketball under three different head coaches. He was suspended academically midway through his junior season and considered transferring to a different school, but instead improved his grades.

As a senior, Pinkston averaged 25 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and two blocks to lead Bishop Loughlin to the CHSAA Class AA intersectional final. He was selected to the Parade All-American second team and was named New York's Player of the Year as a senior.

The Daily News reported that multiple sources expected JayVaughn to sign a letter to attend the University of Tennessee over Villanova and St. John's, but sources with knowledge of Pinkston's thinking say he reconsidered his decision, discussed it with his family and decided to hold off until the late signing date. Before graduating, Pinkston made his announcement April 14, 2010, to continue his education at Villanova University. Coach Jay Wright was excited to for JayVaughn to be entering his school by saying, "JayVaughn is an incredibly talented young man who has a unique passion for the game. He has been well-coached by Edwin Gonzalez and Kimani Young. He can play multiple positions and has been a leader at Bishop Loughlin for four years. We are thrilled to welcome JayVaughn and his mom, Kerry, into the Villanova Family."

College career Redshirt On November 7, 2010, Pinkston punched two students at the Sigma Phi Epsilon house. The Upper Merion Township police arrested and charged Pinkston with two counts of assault and harassment. Villanova University allowed him to finish his coursework for the first semester, but he was banned for the second semester. He could not use practice facilities and had to watch his team play from the bleachers. "That's the first time anything like that had happened to me," he said. "And that's a big one for an 18-year-old kid. I saw my life, everything I had worked for, flash before my eyes."

Jay Wright thought Pinkston was going to transfer, and offered his support if he decided to. Pinkston instead decided to stay with the team, which greatly surprised Wright. Pinkston found lodging with Matt and Christy O'Reilly, whose children went to school with Wright's children. Per NCAA policy, Pinkston had to pay the going rate for renting an apartment in the area. He found work stacking boxes in a nearby warehouse, and the O'Reillys became like a second family to him.

Sophomore Pinkston improved his nutrition and lost weight in the offseason prior to his sophomore year.

Pinkston was named to the preseason second team All-Big East.

As a junior, Pinkston improved his averages to 14.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. He joined teammate James Bell on the All-Big 5 Second Team. He was selected to the District II (NY, NJ, DE, DC, PA, WV) All-District team by the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA). Pinkston was listed on the National Association of Basketball Coaches Division I All‐District 5 second team on March 12.

Senior The New York Post named Pinkston the preseason Big East Player of the Year as a senior. He was selected to the preseason first team All-Big East. In its preseason rankings of the best players in college basketball, ESPN listed Pinkston at number 39. He debuted as a senior on November 14, with 11 points and 7 rebounds against Lehigh. In Villanova's November 25 matchup against Michigan, Pinkston hit a layup to give the Wildcats a 56–55 lead with 13.4 seconds remaining and then blocked Zak Irvin's dunk attempt seconds later. Villanova ended up winning by a score of 60–55. On December 20, in the Wildcats' 82–78 overtime win over Syracuse, Pinkston had 25 points and 10 rebounds and made a basket with 4.2 seconds remaining in regulation to send the game to overtime.

Professional career 2015–16 season After going undrafted in the 2015 NBA draft, Pinkston joined the Brooklyn Nets for the 2015 NBA Summer League. However, in his first practice with the Nets, he tore his left ACL. On March 25, 2016, he was acquired by the Maine Red Claws of the NBA Development League, but didn't play for them.

2016–17 season On July 1, 2016, Pinkston joined the Boston Celtics for the 2016 NBA Summer League. On July 30, 2016, Pinkston signed a one-year deal with the Italian team Dinamica Mantova of the Serie A2.

2017–18 season On July 13, 2017, Pinkston signed with the Polish team Krosno for the 2017–18 season. On March 18, 2018, Pinkston recorded a career-high 37 points, shooting 12-of-23 from the field, along with ten rebounds and four assists in a 106–117 overtime loss to AZS Koszalin. In 30 games played for Krosno, Pinkston averaged 18 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.4 steals, shooting 42.4 percent from 3-point range.

2018–19 season On August 2, 2018, Pinkston signed a two-year deal with the Israeli team Hapoel Holon. However, on October 4, 2018, Pinkston parted ways with Holon before appearing in a game for them. On November 10, 2018, Pinkston signed with the Greek team Kolossos Rodou for the 2018–19 season.

2019–20 season On September 17, 2019, he has signed with KTP Basket of the Korisliiga. Pinkston averaged 16.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.4 steals per game. In the first game of the season, Pinkston suffered a calf injury and left the team.

The Basketball Tournament (TBT) In the summer of 2017, Pinkston competed in The Basketball Tournament on ESPN for Supernova; a team composed of Villanova University basketball alum. In two games, he averaged 7.0 points and 2.5 rebounds per game to help number two seeded Supernova advance to the second-round where they were defeated 82–74 by Team Fancy.

Player profile At 6'7 and 235 pounds, Pinkston is somewhat undersized for the power forward position. He makes up for it with what Jay Wright calls "the killer instinct". His signature move is a fast spin move in the low post, which ESPN praised for its compactness. Pinkston worked on his footwork while he was boxing with the Police Athletic League of New York City. "No doubt boxing has improved my footwork," he said. The Philadelphia Daily News described his game as "Charles Barkley meets DeJuan Blair."