When Tyreke Evans came over to the lowly Sacramento Kings as a key part of the trade that shipped DeMarcus Cousins to the New Orleans Pelicans, he was expected to be a solid young role player that they could build with. Though Evans has performed relatively well thus far through his seven-year NBA tenure despite the injury issues, he was supposed to be something more than what he’s been when he was drafted by the very franchise he’s currently on with the fourth overall pick in 2009. Evans possessed the size and physicality of a wing to go with the ability to distribute and score like a guard.
Though the University of Memphis product enjoyed the best years of his career with the Kins early on in his career including his rookie season in which he poured in upwards of 20 points per game, Evans looks to be a complementary piece as opposed to the franchise leader he could’ve been. Evans knows he has elite capabilities, however, as what he had to say about All-Star starter of the Milwaukee Bucks Giannis Anteotkounmpo was intriguing, to say the least. Following from Sean Cunningham of ABC 10 Sacramento:
Asked Tyreke Evans about Giannis Antetokounmpo. His answer was not what I expected. pic.twitter.com/l7oPgf6jmp
— Sean Cunningham (@SeanCunningham) March 23, 2017
In the interview, we should duly note that Evans was way off when estimating the size of Anteotkounmpo, calling him 6’7″ when in reality the Greek Freak is listed at 6’11”. Despite that inaccuracy, it’s good to know Evans still has confidence in his game despite what’s been a rough couple years.
Many may question what Evans sees in Antetokounmpo to make a comparison to himself but I see where he’s going. Both are gifted athletically and can pass the rock with the best of them, despite neither being a true point guard. They both hold the ability to function as an offense’s primary ball handler and pick apart defenses with their penetration and willingness to set up open teammates.
At the end of the day, sure Evans has some similar skill sets as Antetokounpo does but, obviously, Giannis has the edge in almost every category across the board. In some sense, Antetokounmpo could be classified as a similar, taller prototype to Evans but that doesn’t change the seemingly opposite directions their teams are headed in.
