Reggie Evans

I hadn't realized that the 76ers acquired Reggie Evans last month. Obviously, for a team in desperate need of a power forward this becomes an any-port-in-a-storm kind of situation, but I think Evans is a pretty underrated player. Certainly, "a backup who's being forced to start" isn't how I'd describe a guy who had a league-leading 23 percent rebound rate last season. Obviously, five Reggie Evanses aren't going to get you anywhere, but he seems like an extremely useful player to me -- one who can really shine given the chance to start.

Photo by Flickr user thanasim25 used under a Creative Commons license

Comments

Evans is great for volume shooting compensating shooting efficiency. A team that has AI and Melo should appreciate that.

Posted by Cisco | October 6, 2007 4:40 PM

Please save the figure filbertry for baseball, where it's more exciting than the actual game.
Volume shooting compensating shooting efficiency?
Roll over, Goat Manigault, and tell Helicopter Knowings the news.
Shoot me-- efficiently-- in the head now, please.

Posted by charles pierce | October 6, 2007 5:13 PM

Evans was brilliant as a rebounder and defender for Seattle. If he still plays like he did his first couple of years in the league, he's a great piece for any team. He drives great players crazy because he's relentless defensively.

Offensively, he's a disaster. He might as well not have hands at all.

Posted by David Sousa | October 6, 2007 5:36 PM

A Nuggets fan here. Sorry, Evans is not underrated. He has no basketball skills. None. Can't shoot, can't pass, doesn't even set a good pick. He's a big guy with a great work ethic and a good attitude. A twelve minute a game guy. If he starts, the team sucks.

Posted by Gregory Thelen | October 6, 2007 6:39 PM

He might as well not have hands at all.

I can assure you that Chris Kaman agrees...

Posted by Pooh | October 6, 2007 6:40 PM

"I hadn't realized that the 76ers acquired Reggie Evans last month."

Y'know, if you'd just bother to read your own fucking comments section, you'd have known about this three weeks ago:

We've just witnessed an exchange of the poor man's Dennis Rodman for the poor man's Dikembe Mutumbo and Matthew feels it's worth no coverage whatsover?

Your readers are trying to give you posting topics, and you just ignore them.

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Evans really does bring the Rodman-style game: excellent rebounding and good defense, along with nothing else whatsoever. Unfortunately, his rebounding talents aren't quite off-the-scales like Rodman's, and he doesn't have Rodman's uncanny court sense, so it's more difficult to excuse the gaping holes in all the other facets of his game.

He is fun to watch and root for, however.

What he really needs is a trade to the American League so he can play the Designated Rebounder position and not screw up the team with his lousy play in the field.

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And Pooh wins the thread.

Posted by Petey | October 6, 2007 7:03 PM

"he seems like an extremely useful player to me -- one who can really shine given the chance to start."

He likely will shine on the Sixers. In an odd sense, he's a lot like Earl Boykins - a one dimensional player who can do some great things with minutes just as long as he's not on a team that's looking to win more games than they lose.

But on a winning team like the Nuggets, Evans was firmly below Nene, Najara, and Kleiza on the PF depth chart, with very good reason.

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Fascinatingly, according to Wikipedia, Evans in college led the nation in free throws made. Given that he's a career 53% FT shooter in the pros, I'm extremely confused.

Posted by Petey | October 6, 2007 8:35 PM

And finally, before I go off to celebrate Ramadan:

The whole problem with Evans is what happens after he grabs the offensive rebound.

- He can't put the ball back in the hole.

- He can't knock the foul shots if he barrels to the basket.

- He can't make the outlet pass without being a turnover machine.

Fix any one of those three, and his prodigious offensive rebounding skills would become a lot more useful.

Posted by Petey | October 6, 2007 9:52 PM

Was mentioned in comments here too. To be fair, the news was overshadowed by news of Oden's injury the same day...

My question is whether he really does bring good defense. I haven't seen enough of him to know. But a one dimensional rebounder who doesn't even play good defense would seem to be significantly less valuable than a good rebounder who does play good defense as Rodman did.

Posted by Al | October 7, 2007 2:13 PM

"To be fair, the news was overshadowed by news of Oden's injury the same day..."

Oden got injured?

Posted by Petey | October 7, 2007 5:27 PM