Evan Turner

JRUE HOLIDAY delivered his first assist to Evan Turner more than a month before they officially became teammates. In May, when the Sixers sent their rookie point guard to Secaucus, N.J., to be their good-luck charm at the NBA lottery, Holiday had only one mission. "Everybody told me to go up there and look for Evan," Holiday said last night after the Sixers selected Turner with the second pick in the draft. "We wanted the No. 2 pick. "Yes, we wanted to shoot for No. 1, but everyone was saying, 'Evan Turner.

Position: Guard Height: 6-7. Weight: 205. Age: 21. Birthdate: Oct. 27, 1988. College: Ohio State. At OSU: Was the national player of the year as a junior last season . . . Led the Big Ten in scoring (20.4) and rebounding (9.2) and was second in assists (6.0) and steals (1.7) . . . Missed six games in midseason with a back injury, but rebounded with a monster year . . . Hit a 37-foot buzzer beater in the first round of the Big Ten tournament to dash rival Michigan's NCAA tourney hopes.

These two youngsters are clearly under the most pressure to deliver on the expectations. They are the face of hope for the Sixers. Veterans Andre Iguodala and Elton Brand make the most money by far, but Sixers fans are staking everything in Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner becoming the best backcourt since Maurice Cheeks and Andrew Toney. That's asking a lot of two kids who have a combined 51 NBA starts between them, and one of the two has zero. At 19, Holiday was the youngest player in the NBA last season, but once former coach Eddie Jordan gave him the ball for good, he began to show flashes of a top-notch floor general.

When you can dominate a sport purely with your physical skill, the mental game is an afterthought. Evan Turner has often said that he was at his best as a basketball player when he was 12 years old. The 76ers swingman recalls fondly schooling others who were about his age on the playground, in AAU games, and anywhere else he could find some competition. Back then, at 6-foot-1, he was taller and possessed far more basketball talent than most players his age. Not many players in the NBA possess much more basketball talent than their peers, and Turner is no exception.

For the better part of this season - and a healthy slice of the last - the debate raged over when was the right time to insert Evan Turner into the 76ers lineup. Perhaps the only subject as divisive was what to do with forward Andre Iguodala. The largest group resided in the camp that didn't want Sixers coach Doug Collins bringing Turner off the bench, the thinking being that it was best for the franchise to determine as quickly as possible what it had in the No. 2 overall pick in the 2010 draft.

Evan Turner expects to become a 76er. The Ohio State junior guard has refused to participate in predraft workouts for other NBA teams. He's even jokingly told the Philadelphia-area media to "be nice to me in the future. " "I would kind of be surprised, definitely," Turner said of possibly not becoming a Sixer. But the decision, obviously, will be made by the Sixers - not Turner. And team president and general manager Ed Stefanski has stated that using the second overall pick on Turner in Thursday's draft is not a lock.

CHICAGO - At times during his career at Ohio State, Evan Turner struggled with confidence. Quite surprising considering he was an all-state performer at Chicago's St. Joseph's High, where he averaged 25 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, three steals and three blocks as a senior. When he started seeing the cup half-empty, as he described it yesterday at the NBA combine for this year's potential draft picks, he would turn to his Buckeyes coach, Thad Matta, and to books. One in particular helped him tremendously.

1. Domonic Brown of the Phillies 2. Evan Turner of the 76ers 3. Brandon Graham of the Eagles

BOSTON - Evan Turner, who had played the entire game taking way too many chances, wasn't going to risk another as he drove toward the basket with the Sixers trailing by one point and just over 40 seconds to play against the Boston Celtics on Monday night. The Sixers had led by 10 points late in the third quarter and saw that lead steadily drip away, just as it did in Game 1 of this series. If Turner didn't take care of the ball and get it safely to the basket, the Sixers were looking at another gee-whiz loss to the Celtics and a two-games-to-none series hole.

JRUE HOLIDAY and Evan Turner couldn't be more different when it comes to personalities. Holiday demands respect with his cool style, easygoing manner and easy demeanor. Turner can trash talk with the best of them, often stirring lighthearted arguments in the locker room by taking a side of a conversation that you know he really doesn't believe. He is outwardly confident - even borderline cocky. Their styles on the court are much more alike. Both like to take the ball to the basket as their primary source of scoring and both like to have the ball in their hands.

When you can dominate a sport purely with your physical skill, the mental game is an afterthought. Evan Turner has often said that he was at his best as a basketball player when he was 12 years old. The 76ers swingman recalls fondly schooling others who were about his age on the playground, in AAU games, and anywhere else he could find some competition. Back then, at 6-foot-1, he was taller and possessed far more basketball talent than most players his age. Not many players in the NBA possess much more basketball talent than their peers, and Turner is no exception.

JUST ABOUT each and every tinker to the offense and defense that the 76ers made in Tuesday's 109-92, Game 2 playoff win over the Chicago Bulls worked to perfection. It included not only the starting lineup change of Spencer Hawes and Evan Turner, but also defensive assignments. While Bulls shooting guards Rip Hamilton and Kyle Korver were running their defenders in circles and off picks in Saturday's Game 1 win for Chicago, Sixers coach Doug Collins realized rather quickly that it couldn't happen again, not if his team was going to compete.

I WAS WRONG. The Sixers' backcourt of the future is not Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner. It's Evan Turner and Jrue Holiday. I got wrapped up in the semantics of saying the name of the player running at point guard first and shooting guard second. And in my personal take, I'd bought in to Holiday as the lead and Turner as the off guard. I admit that I was not totally on board with a lot of Sixer fans — who likely will remind me today — who believe that Turner and Holiday would both be better with a switch of roles.

CHICAGO - The 76ers got two points from their starting shooting guard in Saturday's 103-91 loss to the Chicago Bulls in Game 1. After a dismal 7 minutes and 29 seconds of play in the first quarter that included a miss on a wide-open jump shot, a bad turnover and an even-worse foul of a jump shooter, coach Doug Collins pulled Jodie Meeks and kept him on the bench for most of the remainder of the game. Evan Turner took most of the minutes and coach Doug Collins said after the game that his team needs the type of playmaking ability that Turner possesses.

THE RELATIONSHIP between 76ers coach Doug Collins and second-year guard Evan Turner is not a strained one. There is no personal animosity, no grudges held. Has the coach been as complimentary about Turner as he has other players? Probably not. Has Turner been in his coach's doghouse more than most other players? Probably. But it appears it is all part of the teaching process Collins believes Turner needs in order to become the best NBA player he can be. In order for that to happen, Collins is convinced Turner needs structure, so he and associate head coach Michael Curry have taken to providing that recently.

For the better part of this season - and a healthy slice of the last - the debate raged over when was the right time to insert Evan Turner into the 76ers lineup. Perhaps the only subject as divisive was what to do with forward Andre Iguodala. The largest group resided in the camp that didn't want Sixers coach Doug Collins bringing Turner off the bench, the thinking being that it was best for the franchise to determine as quickly as possible what it had in the No. 2 overall pick in the 2010 draft.

Not long after Evan Turner had the game of his life, scoring a career-high 26 points and grabbing nine rebounds to lead the 76ers to a 103-71 win over Boston on Wednesday, Sixers forward Andre Iguodala talked about Turner's not succumbing to the dark side of pro basketball as he waited patiently to be elevated to starter status. "I think it weighs on any basketball player when they are not playing and they think they should be playing," Iguodala said. "Some guys, they go to a vice or they go to something that not only hinders their game but it hinders their health overall.

ALL EVAN TURNER wants to do is play basketball. In 76ers coach Doug Collins' ultimate scenario, Turner would play every game as he did last night. A day that began in a bit of controversy surrounding the second-year player ended with Turner having his best game as a pro, scoring a career-high 26 points and grabbing nine rebounds in a 103-71 blowout of the visiting Boston Celtics. It was an exclamation point at the end of a day that raised many questions about last season's No. 2 overall pick.