Tyreke Evans
Encyclopedia
Tyreke Jamir Evans is an American professional basketball
player with Virtus Roma in Italy
. He is also under contract with the Sacramento Kings
of the National Basketball Association
(NBA), but is not currently playing with them because of the 2011 NBA lockout
. He played college basketball for the University of Memphis
, and was selected by the Sacramento Kings
as the 4th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft
.
, and was mainly raised by his three older brothers. He attended American Christian Academy in Aston, Pennsylvania, and by his sophomore year began drawing comparisons to NBA All-Star Tracy McGrady
. As a senior, he averaged 32.1 points, 8.8 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 4.3 steals. He was named the MVP of the McDonald's High School All-American Game and co-MVP (with Brandon Jennings
) of the Jordan Brand Classic. At the age of 16, he was featured in the documentary Gunning for That #1 Spot
directed by Adam "MCA" Yauch of the Beastie Boys
. Evans was chosen to be the keeper of the SLAM Magazine
High School Diary for the 2008 season.
, after also considering Villanova University
and the University of Texas.
Evans transitioned from playing small forward in high school to guard in college. He struggled at times at the beginning of his freshman season at the shooting guard position. This continued until coach John Calipari
inserted him as the starting point guard in the 11th game of the season, a 60–45 win over the University of Cincinnati
. In 33 minutes, Evans nearly put up a triple-double, with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists. The Tigers would not lose another game until falling to the Missouri Tigers
in the NCAA Tournament.
Evans was named the Conference USA
Rookie of the Week eight times.
Evans was the only freshman finalist for the 2009 U.S. Basketball Writers of America National Player of the year award, named in honor of Oscar Robertson
.
. Evans decided to forgo his remaining three seasons of collegiate eligibility. On June 25, 2009, Evans was selected by the Sacramento Kings
with the fourth overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft
.
On December 1, 2009, Evans was named NBA Western Conference Rookie of the Month for games played from the beginning of the season through November. During that time he averaged 18.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 1.33 steals in 36.1 minutes per game.
On December 21, 2009, he was instrumental in leading the Sacramento Kings back from a 35-point deficit to beat the Chicago Bulls
, 102–98. Evans scored 9 of the Kings last 11 points, single-handedly outscoring the Bulls in the 4th quarter (11 points for Evans vs. 10 for the Bulls).
On January 4, 2010, Tyreke Evans was named Western Conference T-Mobile Rookie of the Month for the second straight month.
On February 12, 2010 Tyreke Evans won the 2010 Rookie/Sophomore Game MVP award after recording 26 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 5 steals on 11/15 shooting. In an act of sportsmanship, he chose to share the award with DeJuan Blair
, who had scored 22 points and pulled down 23 rebounds.
On March 11, 2010, Evans recorded his first career triple-double in a win against the Toronto Raptors
on Rally for RekeROY night. Evans scored 19 points, 10 assists, and 10 rebounds.
He also became the fourth NBA player in history to ever average at least 20 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in his rookie year, joining Oscar Robertson
(1960), Michael Jordan
(1984) and LeBron James
(2003).
On April 27, 2010, Evans was recognized for his accomplishments by being awarded the 2009–2010 NBA Rookie of the Year Award.
, winning by one point with only seconds remaining, O. J. Mayo
hit an off balance shot to put Memphis up by one. With no time outs remaining, Sacramento inbounded to the ball to Evans, who then dribbled the ball to half court and nailed a 3 pointer with time expiring, giving Sacramento a 2 point win.
On January 6, 2011, Tyreke Evans scored 27 points and grabbed 12 boards leading his team to a 122–102 win over the Nuggets.
On January 21, 2011, Evans scored career high 35 points, along with 5 boards and 3 assists and 3 steals.
Evans missed 19 games due to plantar fasciitis
injury in his left foot, missing the 2011 NBA T-Mobile Rookie Challenge.
club Virtus Roma throughout the 2011 NBA Lockout
. However, on November 26, NBA players and owners reached a tentative agreement on the new CBA, so it remains in doubt whether Evans will ever play for the Italian side.
| align="left" | 2009–10
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 72 || 72 || 37.2 || .458 || .255 || .748 || 5.3 || 5.8 || 1.5 || 0.4 || 20.1
|-
| align="left" | 2010–11
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 57 || 53 || 37.0 || .409 || .291 || .771 || 4.8 || 5.6 || 1.5 || 0.5 || 17.8
|-
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 129 || 125 || 37.1 || .436 || .273 || .756 || 5.1 || 5.7 || 1.5 || 0.4 || 19.1
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player with Virtus Roma in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. He is also under contract with the Sacramento Kings
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
of the National Basketball Association
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
(NBA), but is not currently playing with them because of the 2011 NBA lockout
2011 NBA lockout
The 2011 NBA lockout is the fourth lockout in the history of the National Basketball Association . The owners began the work stoppage at 12:01 am EDT on July 1, 2011. The main issues dividing the owners and the players are revenue sharing and the structure of the salary cap...
. He played college basketball for the University of Memphis
Memphis Tigers basketball
The Memphis Tigers men's basketball team represents the University of Memphis in NCAA Division I men's college basketball. The Tigers compete in Conference USA, in which they have won six regular season and four conference tournament championships. As of 2011, the Tigers have the 29th highest...
, and was selected by the Sacramento Kings
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
as the 4th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft
2009 NBA Draft
The 2009 NBA Draft was held on June 25, 2009, the WaMu Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur U.S...
.
High school
Evans grew up in Chester, PennsylvaniaChester, Pennsylvania
Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States, with a population of 33,972 at the 2010 census. Chester is situated on the Delaware River, between the cities of Philadelphia and Wilmington, Delaware.- History :...
, and was mainly raised by his three older brothers. He attended American Christian Academy in Aston, Pennsylvania, and by his sophomore year began drawing comparisons to NBA All-Star Tracy McGrady
Tracy McGrady
Tracy Lamar McGrady, Jr., is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Detroit Pistons.Entering the league after graduating from high school, McGrady eventually became a seven-time All-Star. He led the league in scoring in 2003 and 2004. He has also played for the Toronto...
. As a senior, he averaged 32.1 points, 8.8 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 4.3 steals. He was named the MVP of the McDonald's High School All-American Game and co-MVP (with Brandon Jennings
Brandon Jennings
Brandon Jennings is an American professional basketball player for the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association who plays at point guard....
) of the Jordan Brand Classic. At the age of 16, he was featured in the documentary Gunning for That #1 Spot
Gunnin' For That No. 1 Spot
Gunnin' For That #1 Spot is a 2008 documentary directed by Adam Yauch, founding member of the Beastie Boys. The movie premiered at the Tribeca/ESPN Sports Film Festival in April 2008 and opened in theaters June 27, 2008.-Cast:...
directed by Adam "MCA" Yauch of the Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys are an American hip hop trio from New York City. The group consists of Mike D who plays the drums, MCA who plays the bass, and Ad-Rock who plays the guitar....
. Evans was chosen to be the keeper of the SLAM Magazine
SLAM Magazine
SLAM Magazine is an American basketball magazine in circulation since 1994, published by Source Interlink. SLAM publishes nine issues a year to its circulation of over 500,000 readers worldwide.-History:...
High School Diary for the 2008 season.
College
In April 2008, Evans announced that he would attend the University of MemphisUniversity of Memphis
The University of Memphis is an American public research university located in the Normal Station neighborhood of Memphis, Tennessee and is the flagship public research university of the Tennessee Board of Regents system....
, after also considering Villanova University
Villanova University
Villanova University is a private university located in Radnor Township, a suburb northwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
and the University of Texas.
Evans transitioned from playing small forward in high school to guard in college. He struggled at times at the beginning of his freshman season at the shooting guard position. This continued until coach John Calipari
John Calipari
John Calipari is an American basketball coach. Since April 2009, he has been the men's head coach at the University of Kentucky....
inserted him as the starting point guard in the 11th game of the season, a 60–45 win over the University of Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....
. In 33 minutes, Evans nearly put up a triple-double, with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists. The Tigers would not lose another game until falling to the Missouri Tigers
Missouri Tigers
The Missouri Tigers athletics programs include the extramural and intramural sports teams of the University of Missouri, located in Columbia, Missouri, United States...
in the NCAA Tournament.
Evans was named the Conference USA
Conference USA
Conference USA, officially abbreviated C-USA, is a college athletic conference whose member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports...
Rookie of the Week eight times.
Evans was the only freshman finalist for the 2009 U.S. Basketball Writers of America National Player of the year award, named in honor of Oscar Robertson
Oscar Robertson
Oscar Palmer Robertson , nicknamed "The Big O", is a former American NBA player with the Cincinnati Royals and the Milwaukee Bucks...
.
2009–2010 (rookie season)
On March 31, 2009, Evans declared himself eligible for the 2009 NBA Draft2009 NBA Draft
The 2009 NBA Draft was held on June 25, 2009, the WaMu Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur U.S...
. Evans decided to forgo his remaining three seasons of collegiate eligibility. On June 25, 2009, Evans was selected by the Sacramento Kings
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
with the fourth overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft
2009 NBA Draft
The 2009 NBA Draft was held on June 25, 2009, the WaMu Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur U.S...
.
On December 1, 2009, Evans was named NBA Western Conference Rookie of the Month for games played from the beginning of the season through November. During that time he averaged 18.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 1.33 steals in 36.1 minutes per game.
On December 21, 2009, he was instrumental in leading the Sacramento Kings back from a 35-point deficit to beat the Chicago Bulls
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...
, 102–98. Evans scored 9 of the Kings last 11 points, single-handedly outscoring the Bulls in the 4th quarter (11 points for Evans vs. 10 for the Bulls).
On January 4, 2010, Tyreke Evans was named Western Conference T-Mobile Rookie of the Month for the second straight month.
On February 12, 2010 Tyreke Evans won the 2010 Rookie/Sophomore Game MVP award after recording 26 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 5 steals on 11/15 shooting. In an act of sportsmanship, he chose to share the award with DeJuan Blair
DeJuan Blair
DeJuan Lamont Blair is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association . Before turning pro Blair played center for the University of Pittsburgh men's basketball team from 2007 to 2009...
, who had scored 22 points and pulled down 23 rebounds.
On March 11, 2010, Evans recorded his first career triple-double in a win against the Toronto Raptors
Toronto Raptors
The Toronto Raptors are a professional basketball team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was established in 1995, along with the Vancouver Grizzlies, as part of the NBA's re-expansion...
on Rally for RekeROY night. Evans scored 19 points, 10 assists, and 10 rebounds.
He also became the fourth NBA player in history to ever average at least 20 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in his rookie year, joining Oscar Robertson
Oscar Robertson
Oscar Palmer Robertson , nicknamed "The Big O", is a former American NBA player with the Cincinnati Royals and the Milwaukee Bucks...
(1960), Michael Jordan
Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan is a former American professional basketball player, active entrepreneur, and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats...
(1984) and LeBron James
LeBron James
LeBron Raymone James is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association . Nicknamed "King James", he was a three-time "Mr. Basketball" of Ohio in high school, and was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA superstar while a...
(2003).
On April 27, 2010, Evans was recognized for his accomplishments by being awarded the 2009–2010 NBA Rookie of the Year Award.
2010–2011 season
On December 29, 2010, in a game against the Memphis GrizzliesMemphis Grizzlies
The Memphis Grizzlies are a professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee, USA. The team is part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . Along with the Toronto Raptors, the Grizzlies were established in 1995 as part of the NBA's...
, winning by one point with only seconds remaining, O. J. Mayo
O. J. Mayo
Ovinton J'Anthony "O. J." Mayo , is an American basketball player currently playing with the Memphis Grizzlies of the NBA. He signed with the team on July 8, 2008. He played college basketball for the University of Southern California...
hit an off balance shot to put Memphis up by one. With no time outs remaining, Sacramento inbounded to the ball to Evans, who then dribbled the ball to half court and nailed a 3 pointer with time expiring, giving Sacramento a 2 point win.
On January 6, 2011, Tyreke Evans scored 27 points and grabbed 12 boards leading his team to a 122–102 win over the Nuggets.
On January 21, 2011, Evans scored career high 35 points, along with 5 boards and 3 assists and 3 steals.
Evans missed 19 games due to plantar fasciitis
Plantar fasciitis
Plantar fasciitis is a painful inflammatory process of the plantar fascia, the connective tissue on the sole of the foot.Longstanding cases of plantar fasciitis often demonstrate more degenerative changes than inflammatory changes, in which case they are termed plantar fasciosis. The suffix...
injury in his left foot, missing the 2011 NBA T-Mobile Rookie Challenge.
2011–2012 season
On November 24, 2011, Evans signed a deal with the ItalianItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
club Virtus Roma throughout the 2011 NBA Lockout
2011 NBA lockout
The 2011 NBA lockout is the fourth lockout in the history of the National Basketball Association . The owners began the work stoppage at 12:01 am EDT on July 1, 2011. The main issues dividing the owners and the players are revenue sharing and the structure of the salary cap...
. However, on November 26, NBA players and owners reached a tentative agreement on the new CBA, so it remains in doubt whether Evans will ever play for the Italian side.
Regular season
|-| align="left" | 2009–10
2009–10 NBA season
The 2009–10 NBA season was the 64th season of the National Basketball Association . The 1,230-game regular season began on Tuesday, October 27, 2009, and ended on Wednesday, April 14, 2010....
| align="left" | Sacramento
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
| 72 || 72 || 37.2 || .458 || .255 || .748 || 5.3 || 5.8 || 1.5 || 0.4 || 20.1
|-
| align="left" | 2010–11
2010–11 NBA season
The 2010–11 NBA season was the 65th season of the National Basketball Association . The 2011 NBA All-Star Game was played on February 20, 2011 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat in six games, 4 games to 2, to win their first NBA title, and...
| align="left" | Sacramento
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
| 57 || 53 || 37.0 || .409 || .291 || .771 || 4.8 || 5.6 || 1.5 || 0.5 || 17.8
|-
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 129 || 125 || 37.1 || .436 || .273 || .756 || 5.1 || 5.7 || 1.5 || 0.4 || 19.1
Awards and honors
- NBA Rookie of the YearNBA Rookie of the Year AwardThe National Basketball Association's Rookie of the Year Award is an annual National Basketball Association award given since the 1952–53 NBA season, to the top rookie of the regular season. The winner receives the Eddie Gottlieb Trophy, which is named in honor of the Philadelphia Warriors head...
: 2010 - NBA All-Rookie First TeamNBA All-Rookie TeamThe NBA All-Rookie Team is an annual National Basketball Association honor given since the 1962–63 NBA season to the top rookies during the regular season. Voting is conducted by the NBA head coaches; who are not allowed to vote for players on their own team. The All-Rookie Team is generally...
: 2010 - NBA Rookie Challenge MVP: 2010
- McDonald's All-American Game MVPMcDonald's All-American TeamThe McDonald's All-American Game refers to each of the all-star basketball games played each year for boys' and girls' high-school basketball graduates. Consisting of the top American and Canadian players, each team plays a single exhibition game after the conclusion of the high-school basketball...
: 2008