Tinsley established himself as the starting point guard under Pacers coach Isiah Thomas. He put up statistics of 9.4 points and 8.1 assists per game in 2001–02. On November 16, 2001, he recorded the 9th five-by-five in NBA history since the 1985–86 season. At 23 years and 261 days, he was the youngest to do so until Andrei Kirilenko in 2003. Tinsley played 73 games for the Pacers in 2002–03, starting 69 of them, and his averages dipped to 7.8 points and 7.5 assists per contest. The following year, Rick Carlisle replaced Thomas as the Pacers' head coach, and promoted veteran guard Kenny Anderson to the starting point guard slot, with Anthony Johnson as his backup. When Anderson and Johnson went down with injuries, Tinsley regained his status as a starter. As the Pacers advanced to the 2004 Eastern Conference Finals, Tinsley started all 16 playoff games. Tinsley spent the majority of the 2004–05 season on injured reserve due to a bruised left foot, but the team played its way to a 44–38 record and the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference. Tinsley missed the first four games of the Pacers' first-round series against the Boston Celtics, but made a return in a Game 5 victory. In that game on May 3, 2005, Tinsley made 7 assists, 5 steals, and 6 points, and the 5 steals tied the most among all players during the 2005 postseason and his personal high for the playoffs. Tinsley's injury problems continued during the 2007–08 season; he only played in 39 games, during which he averaged a career-high 8.4 assists. For the 2008–09 season, Tinsley was replaced in the starting lineup by point guard T. J. Ford. O'Brien and Pacers' President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird told Tinsley he would not play for the Pacers again and would be traded as soon as possible, then shipped his personal items to Tinsley's home in Atlanta. Tinsley then requested a contract buyout through his agent. Because of the situation where Indiana's insistence on trading and not outright waiving Tinsley meant that no other team offered Indiana anything of value to acquire him, the NBA Players Association filed a grievance against the Pacers on Tinsley's behalf on February 11, 2009. On July 22, 2009, the Pacers waived Tinsley.
On November 14, 2009, the Memphis Grizzlies signed Tinsley as a free agent. Chris Wallace, the General Manager of the Grizzlies, stated that he "was the best available player out on the board." The Grizzlies did not guarantee Tinsley a starting spot, but told him he would be allowed to compete for the point guard position.
On November 3, 2011, Tinsley was picked 1st overall by the Los Angeles D-Fenders in the NBA Development League Draft. Tinsley played eight games with the D-Fenders and averaged 9.9 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 7.6 assists per game.
On December 12, 2011, Tinsley was signed by the Utah Jazz, along with Keith McLeod, and Trey Gilder. On June 29, 2012, the Jazz exercised the team option on Tinsley's contract to keep him under contract for one more season. On October 26, 2013, he re-signed with the Jazz. On November 12, 2013, he was waived by the Jazz.
