Family Ties Continue to Make Impact for TJ Wainwright

Long before TJ Wainwright showed up to practice sessions inside the UPMC Events Center for the Robert Morris Colonials, he tailored his craft just steps outside his house in Los Angeles.

The routine Wainwright followed might not have been that of a normal kid. Instead of spending time inside on a gaming console, he would spend hours on a half-sized court in his backyard that was stenciled with a 3-point arc and a free throw line.

Every day he came home from school, Wainwright shifted gears to focus on his passion.

“It was normal to me until I got to school and realized none of my friends are working out after school in third, fourth and fifth grade,” he said.

What became normal for Wainwright was the he wasn’t alone in his endeavors. His brother Mitch Lyons was by his side every dribble, crossover and shot along the way.

“It would be me and my brother Mitch outside almost every day after school and he’d be teaching me new moves,” Wainwright said.

As Wainwright completed his day at school, his older brother spent time researching the next best thing to add to his repertoire.

“While I’m at school, Mitch is probably watching YouTube videos of NBA players, trying to figure out new moves that I can add to my bag, so we trying to perfect that every day. We’ll focus on a certain move. It’s just time in the lab,” Wainwright said.

Robert Morris Colonials guard TJ Wainwright (5) January 10, 2024 David Hague/PSN

The countless days and nights spent on the outdoor court shaped Wainwright. But the family ties in sports went deeper than TJ and Mitch.

While Mitch played high school hoops, Wainwright’s other two older brothers went on to play at the collegiate level.

Max Lyons and Matthew Lyons were successful in the football ranks. As a defensive back, Max spent time at Portland State and Southeastern Louisiana. Matthew originally signed in the Pac-12 with Washington but would eventually find a role for several years with the Nevada Wolfpack at the linebacker position.

Wainwright’s only sister, Mariah Lyons, continued that athletic background as she also played high school hoops and was a McDonald’s All-American nominee.

Surrounded by athletes, Wainwright knew he would follow in their footsteps.

“It was my biggest inspiration growing up,” he said. “Growing up, I would brag about them to my elementary and middle school friends.”

With the support of his siblings, Wainwright started to emerge as a legit high school basketball prospect.

After bouncing around at two schools early in his high school days, he finally landed at Westchester High School for his last two years.

As a junior, Wainwright helped the Comets win a city title, but his senior season, they came up just short in the city championship.

His ability to shoot the three and serve as a lead guard boosted Wainwright’s rankings. 247Sports labeled him as a 3-star prospect and the offers started to roll in. Loyola Marymount, Pepperdine, UC Santa Barbara and Washington State all offered the 6-foot-3 point guard.

Then, it all came crashing down. COVID-19 abruptly halted Wainwright’s recruiting process and he was stuck with nowhere to go.

“I had lost all my offers,” Wainwright said. “I didn’t know what my next move was going to be because I had nothing on the table.”

At the last minute, a school across the country offered Wainwright to come play in their post grad program.

“Montverde fell into my lap two or three weeks before school started,” Wainwright said. “They called while I was playing for Vegas Elite in Peach Jam. We set up a visit and me and my mom and my dad went out there.”

The post grad team at Montverde allowed for Wainwright to polish his basketball skills while he started to look elsewhere to play.

“We had already graduated high school, so we were in elective classes all day waiting for practice,” Wainwright said. “We were there strictly for basketball. You were just focused on that practice.”

Even as Wainwright traveled often during his high school days, Montverde was an eye-opening experience that prepared him for his next move.

“They had strict no internet after 12 a.m. Lights out at 11. Wake up at 6:30. Once I went to Montverde, I was like I can go anywhere in the country and be fine. The culture shock from LA to Montverde was pretty difficult, but from Montverde to anywhere else was not difficult,” he said.

That next transition would be Robert Morris.

After making a gameday visit to catch the Colonials beat Green Bay, Wainwright committed in early February of 2022.

Wainwright’s decision weighed heavily on the opportunities that were presented to him.

“I felt a connection with the coaches,” he said. “They were telling me things on my visit and they upheld their end. They were saying they weren’t going to recruit any other point guards if I come here and they didn’t. My biggest thing was to come in and make an immediate impact.”

The freshman didn’t have to wait long as he averaged 10.1 minutes per game and added two points per contest.

“I think one of the things we thought about TJ when we recruited him was you always knew he was in the game,” head coach Andy Toole said. “He was always around the ball. He was always engaged.

Robert Morris Colonials guard TJ Wainwright (1) January 29, 2023 David Hague/PSN

While Wainwright saw the floor during his rookie campaign, he felt there was a lot to improve upon and knew that he needed to change his mindset over the summer.

“I was staying out here, getting work in three times a day with the coaches getting shots up,” Wainwright said. “Making sure I wasn’t going to have a repeat of my freshman year because I knew I was capable of a lot more than that. With guys leaving this year and people needing to step up, I was making sure I was ready.”

With an increased role this season, Wainwright has been a viable option of the bench for the Colonials.

As Wainwright has poured in multiple double-digit outings, none were as big as his career-high performance against Detroit Mercy. Not only did he catch fire to help his team win a double-overtime thriller as he scored a personal-best 30 points, but the ungodly effort also came in front of his mom and brother.

“It was truly a blessing to have my family be there, for us to get the win, everything about that night went perfect,” he said.

And emotional TJ Wainwright embracing his family after a career performance. The sophomore guard single-handily kept RMU in the game at the end and helped them win in OT. pic.twitter.com/VZViUKJxpB

— Tristan Freeman (@hoopsnut351) January 18, 2024

His mentor growing up in Mitch and his mom Kathryn make the trip cross country often, but that one was a spontaneous decision.

When Wainwright sees his family in the stands, it takes him back to when he was younger.

“When they come to the games, it gives me a reminder of how I used to play,” he said. “When I used to have big games in high school and AAU. It’s like a fresh reminder of what I can really do when I look at my mom or look at my brother in the stands and it’s like ‘alright, I need to turn it up a little bit.”

Finding another level against Detroit Mercy with his family in attendance, Wainwright continued that play against IUPUI where he registered 16 points.

However, one of his most important plays came when he tried to pick a defender’s pocket and dove after a rolling ball go out of bounds. That play sparked the bench as they responded with energy.

Robert Morris Colonials guard TJ Wainwright (1) January 29, 2023 David Hague/PSN

“He’s a guy when he’s engaged in the game, he can energize his teammates and energize their efforts,” Toole said. “That’s why that play was significant to me and his decision to lay out for that ball.”

As Wainwright’s 3-star potential starts to show, he wants to make sure he doesn’t get too far ahead of himself.

“Staying level-headed and controlling what I can control,” he said about his play. “Have a clear head going into the games and execute the gameplan as best as I can.”

Averaging 10.1 points per game as a sophomore, Wainwright is illustrating how he can become a valuable piece not only now, but moving forward for Robert Morris.