Tyreke Evans could benefit from a change in scenery when he joins the New Orleans Pelicans. (Photo Credit/SacramentoPressMedia/Flickr.com)
Few teams have shaken things up in this offseason as much as the New Orleans Pelicans. They made their first big splash on draft night, when they acquired Jrue Holiday from the Philadephia 76ers in exchange for No. 6 pick Nerlens Noel. That was already a stunning move, but the Pelicans upped the ante last week when they traded for former Rookie Of The Year Tyreke Evans. The Pelicans received Evans in a trade that sent point guard Greivis Vasquez to the Sacramento Kings and center Robin Lopez to the Portland Trail Blazers. This move alters the Pelicans’ roster considerably and sees them taking a chance on an extremely talented player whose NBA career so far has not gone according to plan.
When Tyreke Evans entered the league in 2009-10, he looked like a star in the making. He averaged per 20 points per game with nearly six assists and made tons of electrifying plays. Unfortunately, in the years that followed, Evans’ game declined. The following year, his field-goal percentage dropped from .458 to .409 and his points per game dropped to 17.8. He has averaged fewer points per game than the year before in each of the last three years and seemed to become less and less assertive on offense. After shining in his rookie year, Evans slowly began to simply blend into the fabric in Sacramento, as his potential went unrealized.
| Season | Tm | G | MP | FG | FGA | FG% | 3P | 3PA | 3P% | FT | FTA | FT% | ORB | DRB | TRB | AST | STL | TOV | PF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009-10 | SAC | 72 | 37.2 | 7.4 | 16.2 | .458 | 0.5 | 2.0 | .255 | 4.8 | 6.5 | .748 | 0.9 | 4.4 | 5.3 | 5.8 | 1.5 | 3.0 | 2.8 | 20.1 |
| 2010-11 | SAC | 57 | 37.0 | 6.7 | 16.4 | .409 | 0.8 | 2.6 | .291 | 3.6 | 4.7 | .771 | 0.8 | 4.0 | 4.8 | 5.6 | 1.5 | 3.2 | 2.5 | 17.8 |
| 2011-12 | SAC | 63 | 34.3 | 6.5 | 14.3 | .453 | 0.3 | 1.6 | .202 | 3.2 | 4.1 | .779 | 1.0 | 3.6 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 1.3 | 2.7 | 2.2 | 16.5 |
| 2012-13 | SAC | 65 | 31.0 | 5.6 | 11.8 | .478 | 0.7 | 2.0 | .338 | 3.2 | 4.2 | .775 | 0.9 | 3.6 | 4.4 | 3.5 | 1.4 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 15.2 |
| Career | 257 | 34.9 | 6.6 | 14.6 | .449 | 0.6 | 2.0 | .276 | 3.8 | 4.9 | .765 | 0.9 | 3.9 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 1.4 | 2.7 | 2.4 | 17.5 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 7/10/2013.
Of course, this wasn’t entirely his fault. He struggled with injury problems throughout the past few seasons and when he was healthy, the Kings often didn’t know what to do with him. He was a point guard, a shooting guard and a small forward at various times. This constant rotating of positions made it difficult for Evans to feel comfortable in the Kings’ lineup. We may look at Evans’ career so far as a disappointment, but it should be kept in mind the Sacramento was not a good environment for him to hone his skills. Working in New Orleans under the well-respected Monty Williams should be a much better situation for Evans and it may allow him to go back to playing with the flash he showed during his rookie season.
One good thing for Evans is that he likely won’t be switching roles anywhere near as much as he did in Sacramento. Jrue Holiday will be handling the point guard duties, while Eric Gordon — as long as he stays healthy — will be the starting 2-guard. This leaves the Pelicans with two options: Start Evans as the small forward or bring him off the bench. You could understand the logic behind either choice. He’s clearly an upgrade over Al-Farouq Aminu at the 3 spot, but if he were to come off the bench, he and Ryan Anderson would give the Pelicans one of the scariest second units in the league. In the end, the decision will come down to how well Evans gels with Holiday and Gordon, as well as much of a boost the bench needs.
Regardless of his role, however, the Pelicans have improved their team by acquiring Evans. While he ran into some issues in Sacramento, he still has a ton of talent and, in the right situation, could take a team very far. Look for Evans to rejuvenate his career in New Orleans and quite possibly take the Pelicans to their first playoff berth since trading Chris Paul.