BOSTON — Where most free agents last summer saw a subpar Boston Celtics team with a crowded depth chart, Evan Turner saw an opportunity for a fresh start.
After a disappointing stint with the Indiana Pacers in the final half of the 2013-14 season, Turner surprised many around the league by electing to rebuild his career on a rebuilding team.
The 26-year-old swingman signed a two-year contract in September and earned a role as a top reserve in the Celtics rotation early in the 2014-15 season. Over 19 contests, Turner has averaged 9.2 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 22.8 minutes per game.
Perhaps more importantly, Turner is quietly silencing the critics following his struggles with the Pacers and Philadelphia 76ers.
"I don't know how that really happened," Turner told Bleacher Report, when asked about his damaged reputation last offseason. "I mean, sometimes when the smoke clears you look back on it and one thing I try to do is see what I did, or how I could have handled it differently and just worry about that.
"A lot of people write stuff and don't take people's character into consideration. Sometimes people write stuff for that story for that one day. I still knew who I was and still know I tried to play the game the right way. I fit in where I could, and that was it."
Celtics head coach Brad Stevens likes how Turner has responded to last year's adversity in his new home.
"He's got even more hunger added to his norm, just because of the way last year ended for him," Stevens said. "And I think he's looking at it as a fresh start and a start that he can take advantage of."
A Victim of Tanking
Turner was drafted No. 2 overall by the Phdelphia 76ers in the summer of 2010 and almost immediately provided a nice bench spark for what was then an up-and-coming franchise.
The former Ohio State star helped the Sixers make back-to-back playoff appearances in 2011 and 2012, but the team's progress ended quickly when new general manager Sam Hinkie dismantled an underperforming roster in the summer of 2013. The Sixers traded Jrue Holiday for draft picks, let Lou Williams go in free agency and brought no adequate replacements in.
With the top guards gone, Turner graduated to a leading role in the team's offense, averaging a career-best 17.4 points over 54 games in Philadelphia through mid-February of the 2013-14 season. His productivity was marred by ineffective shooting (42.8 percent from the field), however, as much of the team's offensive onus fell to him nightly.
No comments:
Post a Comment