Maurice Evans is strikingly consistent. Every close to full season he plays, Mo grabs about the same amount of rebounds, shoots roughly the same percentage, averages about the same amount of points. It is striking because game to game, Mo can be Jeckyll and Hyde. Month to month he would go from playing a game to see how close he could come to hitting the front of the rim to draining corner threes like the magic number that they are.
It makes me go back and forth on whether Evans is underrated or overrated. Mostly because I would go back and forth between thinking he was horrible and awesome. Neither really being true. He is no "defensive stopper" which he was labeled on upon coming to Atlanta, but he is a perfectly adequate defender. He is no terrific finisher but enjoys a quick pace and can put back offensive rebounds for dunks with the best of them. He goes from automatic beyond the arc to Josh Smith with a quicker green light.
Sometimes I want to say we have a great role player, that we need to appreciate Mo Evans more. After all, he works hard, doesn't put up with poor effort from others, and does whatever he is asked. Where are the Mo Evans fan clubs?
Of course, the next night, I demand a single reason as to why Mo just played 18 minutes since I just watched him front rim jump shots and overexagerate (which I didn't think was possible) how good Dwyane Wade's first step is.
What I am trying to say is I am glad Evans has two first names. "Good Evans" will from here on will be Mo. Mo is the kind of guy you want to hang out with. "Bad Evans" will be Maurice. It sounds like parrot.
I guess what Mo/Maurice Evans is is a role player. He is a cog in the wheel. And the wheel needs cogs. So I am glad the Hawks have one I know will try to work every game. And who knows, maybe this season we will get to see an extended stay from Mo. We will call it a Mo Marathon on the way to Joe Johnson averaging less than 37 minutes a game.
Other player previews: Marvin Williams, Zaza Pachulia.