An end to the Tryeke Evans Point guard debate

Tyreke Evans is not a point guard, and thank God for that. Teams do not win championships when point guards are their best player. Lets take a look at recent history; there are only two examples of a point guard truly dominating as a setup man and clutch shooter, Tony Parker in 06-07 and Chauncy Billups in 03-04. I think it is fair to say that in the case of Billups, he was surrounded by a dominant team, and was lucky to be playing against an ancient Lakers team. And I would argue that in Parkers case, Tim Duncan was clearly the best player on the Floor. Parker also had the luxury of having Bruce Bowen on the court to guard the dominant guard, as well as knowing that Duncan was going to protect the rim. Jason Kidd is the closest point guard that we have seen to dominant, and even he has never won a championship (appeared twice as teams best player).
Tyreke Evans is not a point guard, and thank God for that. I would argue that Tyreke Evans is a better version of Dwayne Wade. I would not argue that today, but give me 2 years and we will talk. As of right now, Tyreke is on pace to finish just 6 points per game behind Wade (a sixth year vet), he is on pace to have only 1.3 less assists per game, and will out rebound Wade by .2 (a draw). This only tells half of the story, It’s the way that both of these players score that intrigues me. According to Hoopsdata.com Tyreke Evans scores 5 baskets at the rim (layups/dunks) per game and Wade scores 4.5 times per game at the rim. Both men average 1.9 attempts per game from within 10 feet, both shoot less than one shot per game from 10-15 feet, from 16-23 feet away Wade averages 2.2 scores, and Tyreke averages 1.2 scores, from 3 point range, Tyreke averages .5 per game and Wade averages 1 per game. This shot chart data shows that while not identical, there games are almost identical. One more aspect that is a byproduct of both players aggressive rim attacking style is that they both get to the free throw line regularly. Wade averages 6.7 made free throws per game and Evans averages 5.4 made free throws per game and both men are shooting 75% from the line.
Tyreke Evans is not a point guard and thank God for that. So instead of debating if he is a point guard or a two guard, lets enjoy the rare talent that we are getting to watch. Regardless of whether or not he achieves the heralded 20-5-5 mark this season; it is safe to say that Tyreke Evans is one of the most gifted 3 guards in the entire world. I say 3 guard because, clearly he is not a 1, his shot is not developed enough to be a 2, and he gets to the rim like a 3. He will be the best player on a championship team at some point over the next 10 years. I just hope that he accomplishes that while wearing a Sacramento Jersey.

*On a side note, Kevin Durant and Lebron will prevent Tyreke and Wade from ever winning an MVP trophy and possibly prevent Tyreke from ever winning a championship.

A few thoughts on Tiger

Over the last few weeks, any person not living under a rock has been bombarded with stories about Tiger and his harem of mistresses. Personally, I don't really care if he was faithful or not, its not my business. The only relationship that I have with Tiger is watching him play golf. That relationship has been working just fine for over a decade. As far as I know, there is only one woman that Tiger cheated on, therefore no other person has the need to loathe Tiger. Unfortunately for golf fans, Tiger has been forced to step away from golf, to concentrate on his marriage. I commend him for putting his family first, but I will be taking a break from watching golf until his break is over.

What I truly find fascinating is that the Media has decided to keep this story going, and going, and going. I would love to know why they care so much. All the media has done is push Tiger out of golf. There are now reports that Tiger is going into seclusion in the south of France, due to their strict media laws. The media has traded decades of future golf stories, for 3 weeks of juicy gossip. Tiger has always been an extremely private with his personal life, I can only imagine how quiet he will be when he comes back to golf.

Growing up I loved Michael Jordan, Emmit Smith, and Rickey Henderson. I loved watching them play and dominate there respective sports. The Media also loved these athletes, therefore they resisted the urge to out the indiscretion's of dominate athletes. As we all know, Michael Jordan had his fair share of mistress's, so why didn't the media report on them. I would argue that they preferred to watch MJ play basketball, then to chase him into seclusion. I am in no way arguing that adultery is acceptable or reasonable, I just don't care if they are committing it.

All in all, I would rather watch Tiger play golf then read about his sex life. unfortunately, the mainstream media has decided that 3 weeks of gossip is better than a decade plus of great golf stories. I hope they enjoy the next two years of watching lefty, Daly, and every other mediocre golfer. I for one will miss sunday golf, the red shirt that has single handedly shaken the will of great players, and the fist pump that comes after a 52 footer. I will miss you Tiger. See you in few years.

First Post

I would like to start out with thanking you all for reading this blog. My goal is to create a blog that encompasses my three passions. I am a politics junky, I recently graduated with a degree in Political Science from CSUSM. Instead of pursuing a career in the field of Politics, I decided to become a cook and work my way up to Chef. Lastly, I will write about my leisure time passion; Sports. With that said, each day I will post either a new recipe, provide commentary on the big sports events, or examine the newest political triumph or failure (If I can, I will post numerous times per day and all three topics will be discussed). Without further ado, The PSC Blog will officially begin

Recipe #1

Caramelized Pear Turkey Burgers

Serves 4

1 lb. Ground Turkey

2 pears

8 oz Spring Greens Mix

4 slices of Pepper Jack Cheese (Use whatever you like)

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

1 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons of butter

1 tablespoon crushed red pepper

2 cloves of garlic

*Bread/Rolls: this is up to you, I prefer using sweet Hawaiian rolls. Hamburger buns will work also

Preparation

- Mix ground turkey with 1/2 cup brown sugar, 2 cloves of garlic, and 1 tablespoon of crushed red pepper. Let Sit for 15-30 minutes if time is available.

- Make 4 equal sized turkey patties

- Slice 1 pear into very thin slices

- Dice 1 pear (to be added to spring mix)

Cooking

- Turkey Burgers: Multiple ways to cook

Frying Pan:

- Medium heat

- Cook to Preferred Temperature

- Medium well is usually 6-8 minutes on both sides

BBQ

- High heat

- Cook to Preferred Temperature

- Medium will be roughly 5 minutes on both sides

Broiler

- High Heat

- Rack on top shelf

- Medium will be 6-7 minutes on both sides

Spring Mix Topping

- Mix Diced Pair, 2 table spoons of Mayonnaise, and 8 oz. spring mix in bowl

Caramelized Pear Topping

- In saute pan mix half cup of brown sugar, 2 tablespoons of butter, and sliced pears.

- Cook until pears are brown

Completion

- 3 minutes before burgers are done, place rolls/bread/buns on BBQ or in Broiler

- 2 minutes before burgers are done, place cheese on top of burger

Service

- Place bottom portion of bread on plate, Place Burger patty on bread, put caramelized pears on top of burger then place 1/4 of pear spring slaw on top of burger. Put on top bread and serve.

Enjoy,

Bryan