Tyreke Evans

BOSTON - Six weeks ago, Tyreke Evans was the go-to guy on a young Sacramento Kings team. Six weeks ago, as his coach put it, he was "a 20-point" per-game player. Six weeks ago, the swingman was finally getting into a rhythm at his new position. Six weeks ago, Evans suffered a left knee injury. Just as his game finally began to click in a way it hadn't since 2009, just when he began to understand his role, his left knee flared up. Evans returned to the Kings lineup at the beginning of this month but the injury has lingered, and without his usual burst Evans' game hasn't been as efficient.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - If you're a 76ers fan, consider putting down this newspaper. Because this is a story about Tyreke Evans, who's given hope and energy to the previously floundering Sacramento Kings. Because this is a story about a Philly kid, a graduate of American Christian Academy in Delaware County, whose ball-on-a-string skills and beyond-explosive first step have turned the Kings from who-really-cares into gotta-check-them-out. If you're a Sixers fan, consider putting down this newspaper because it might be painful knowing Sacramento now has the thing - that thing - which your team can't seem to find: an identity.

NEW YORK - Tyreke Evans looks much older than 22, plays older, and certainly feels older. After being named a McDonald's High School all-American in 2008 while playing for American Christian Academy in Aston, the 6-foot-6 guard from Chester appeared to be on the fast track to the NBA. He stayed just one year at the University of Memphis, was the No. 4 player selected in the 2009 NBA draft, by the Sacramento Kings, and was named rookie of the...

Only Tyreke Evans knows for sure where he's headed for college. But that hasn't stopped every two-bit Internet "insider" from claiming he has the goods on the American Christian blue chip senior-to-be. The latest rumor that has the recruiting Web sites and message boards aflutter is that Evans has orally committed to Louisville. Evans, one of the most coveted recruits ever from Southeastern Pennsylvania, said that couldn't be any further from the truth. "I have a pretty good idea why it got started," said Evans, a 6-foot-5 guard from Chester.

Tyreke Evans continues to be haunted by the November 2007 afternoon when his cousin, riding in the Ford Expedition that Evans was driving, pulled out a handgun and killed 19-year-old Marcus Reason in Chester Township. The 6-6 rookie point guard for the Sacramento Kings was never charged in the drive-by shooting. In fact, Evans testified for the prosecution during the preliminary hearing for his cousin, Jamar Evans, who later pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and was ordered to serve 9 to 20 years in a state prison.

IF YOU WERE ONE of many who scoffed when Tyreke Evans announced his intent to enter the NBA draft after only a year at Memphis - prepare to eat crow. Evans, the Sacramento Kings point guard from American Christian High, is the fourth rookie in NBA history to average 20 points, five rebounds and five assists per game joining Oscar Robertson, Michael Jordan and LeBron James. A top choice for rookie of the year honors, Evans also joins James and Kobe Bryant as the only players to average more than 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists this season.

Tuesday marked the 75th day of the NBA lockout and Tyreke Evans is considering his options if an agreement is not reached between owners and the players association. One of them, of course, is playing overseas. "I love the game so much," he said. "Working out ain't gonna do it for me. I'd rather play somewhere. If I have an opportunity to go overseas and play, I'd have to think about it. " Evans, set to enter his third season with the Sacramento Kings, was at Science and Discovery High in Chester on Tuesday afternoon, giving back to his hometown.

Tyreke Evans left home to play college basketball and certainly took his jump shot with him. Memphis played for the NCAA title last season, but this season, the Chester native is the Tigers' leading scorer. Evans, a freshman guard, was averaging 16.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.6 steals going into Memphis' game against Syracuse today. Evans and the Tigers will play Drexel on Monday in Memphis. But Evans also took with him a sense that it was time to grow up. "Leaving home is big," Evans said in a recent interview.

Since the day his son Marcus was killed by gunfire from the passenger window of a car driven by Tyreke Evans, Wilson Reason has wanted accountability. For more than a year and a half, he sat stoically through legal motions, continuances, and, finally, a guilty plea by Jamar Evans, who pulled the trigger. But he always wanted to hear more about the driver. Tyreke Evans, he said, "left my son in the street to die. " Evans, the Sacramento Kings' rookie point guard, and his cousin Jamar are among four men named in a wrongful-death civil suit filed in Delaware County by the family of Marcus Reason, who was killed Nov. 25, 2007, in the drive-by shooting.

High school basketball superstar Tyreke Evans drove a sport utility vehicle away from the scene after a passenger allegedly shot and killed a man last month, according to a Chester Township police affidavit that was released last week. Evans, who lives in the city of Chester, has not been charged with any crime. A senior at American Christian Academy in Aston, Delaware County, Evans is considered one of the nation's top high school players and is being heavily recruited by top-tier colleges, including Villanova, Memphis and Louisville.