What Dallas Mavericks Get In Jeremy Evans

By Christian Blood | Jul 7, 2015

Jan 18, 2015; San Antonio, TX, USA; Utah Jazz small forward Jeremy Evans (40) dunks the ball against the San Antonio Spurs during the second half at AT&T Center. The Spurs won 89-69. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports /

As the Dallas Mavericks offseason continues to roll into high gear, the acquisition of forward Jeremy Evans from the Utah Jazz may be among the biggest ones this year, next to the signing of center DeAndre Jordan last week, of course.

So much has happened in such a short period of time that it’s almost hard to remember just how bleak the picture of the 2015-16 Mavericks was looking like. This was only a week ago, and the opening hours of free agency were – well, let’s just say that they weren’t encouraging.

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Of all the players lost right out of the gate, the instant departure of Al-Farouq Aminu to the Portland Trail Blazers was the one I thought the Mavs might have the most difficulty recovering from, especially given those other bodies lost, like center Tyson Chandler to the Phoenix Suns and Monta Ellis to the Indiana Pacers.

But losing the defensive hustle of Aminu was certainly a hole that had to be filled.

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Enter Evans, who’s nothing more than the 2012 All-Star Weekend Slam Dunk Contest in Orlando, Fla.

Yes, the Mavericks have definitely taken a positive step towards replacing the athleticism of Aminu as a player off the bench. Both players stand 6’9” with Aminu weighing 15 pounds more than Evans’ 200-pound frame.

Also true is the fact that Evans, despite being a few years older, hasn’t exactly seen the same kind of minutes per game as Aminu has during his time in the NBA, one of those taking place in the D-League with the Utah Flash.

But in 2013-14, Evans saw a sharp increase in his playing time as he accumulated a total of 18.3 minutes per game in his fourth year as a pro.

Last season, Aminu chalked up 18.5 minutes coming off the Dallas bench.

Despite being older than Aminu, Evans would seem to have much more to prove on the court, and it’s not like the former Mavericks forward was highly accomplished, nor will he be highly paid in Dallas.

As the video shows, Evans has a tremendous ceiling when it comes to offense and defense. His dunking skills are well-noted, but his shot blocking ability and takeoff point going to the rim show some pretty exciting abilities. The final highlight (No. 1) in the video is a classic example of the kind of thing that’s possible with Evans.

Expect this under-utilized player to develop further under Dallas head coach Rick Carlisle. What seems evident is that, along with the obvious snagging of Jordan, the Mavs aren’t interested in going back to the days of simply relying on hot-handed shooters to win games. Dallas wants to get close to the rim and then get above it, period.

While Evans doesn’t bring quite the same abilities that Brandon Wright once did for Dallas, Jordan certainly does, at least where scoring from close range is concerned. The hope is that Evans can continue developing his shot, which at times is gorgeous.

The next video shows some examples of how Evans is able to elevate to the rafters while tossing up shots that are completely unblock-able and right on the money.

It seems that the Mavs were able to bring in a younger player that was developed by somebody else, as opposed to the other way around. Evans has just enough experience in the league to warrant continued opportunities, but I have the feeling that his best days are ahead of him while suiting up with Dallas.

His offensive skills will continue to improve, but his shot-blocking ability will be seen by opponents as completely irritating and obnoxious, pretty much the same way Aminu was characterized.

Keep an eye on Evans this coming season.

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