As the Philadelphia 76ers have started to turn around there season, the team has adopted a team motto- “Show Ya Love”.
And while the city has started, slowly, to start paying attention to the Sixers, there is one player who should finally start to get some love from the fans.
That player is rookie first round pick, Evan Turner.
The excitement that came from the Sixers getting the second overall pick quickly went away when reports first started to come out of the Orlando Summer Leagues. Fans were being told Turner was too small, had trouble adjusting to moving without the ball, and looked nothing like the player that was a dominating star at Ohio State.
Type Evan Turner into Google, and the first suggestion that comes with it is “bust”.
But the truth is, that after a slow start, Turner has turned it around and is an intricate part of the Sixers new winning ways.
While Turner’s stats are not mind blowing, his 7.5 ppg, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists show a solid all-around game. Turner is ranked 10th in points, despite getting less minutes and field goal attempts then all but one of the players above him.
When it comes to assists and rebounds, Turner is one of only 4 rookies to be in the top ten in both categories. The other three? Blake Griffin, John Wall and Demarcus Cousins. Those 3 players all average more minutes then Turner, and all three are one of the top, if 
not the top, offensive option on there team.
A stat that displays the all-around game Turner has demonstrated this season is that when you combine points, assists, and rebounds, Turner is ranked 8th among rookies.
Turners all-around game and play off the bench has been a key to the Sixers turn around, but it also hurts him in terms of numbers. All of the players ranked ahead of Turner are on losing teams except for Landry Fields. In fact, Fields and Turner are the only two players in terms of combined points, rebounds, assists average in the top 26 that are on winning teams.
While Turner does come off the bench, according to 82games.com, the Sixers have the highest winning percentage when Turner is on the floor. They say that by the numbers, the Sixers best lineup is Louis Williams, Andre Iguodala, Thaddeus Young, Elton Brand and Evan Turner.
This number backs up the clutch play that Turner demonstrated on Sunday in the Sixers overtime win over the Golden State Warriors. Turner scored 20 points in the game, 8 of which came in overtime. Turner was on the floor for 14 of the last 17 minutes, and all of overtime.
Despite all of the numbers supporting Turner, Sixers fans can still point to the success DeMarcus Cousins is having in Sacramento. His down-low game is something the Sixers could use, but his attitude is something they could do without. The Sixers have talent, but a big reason for the turn around has been the team environment Coach Doug Collins built. Turner is a part of that, and his all-around, do what the team needs game supports that he bought into Collins system. Would Cousins have done the same? We don’t know, but this city has seen what a disruptive force in a locker room can do to a team.
Turner will not get any votes for rookie of the year, and did not even get invited to be a part of the Rookie All Star Team. In a draft class that has more busts that stars, Turner has been somewhere in the middle.
But there is no denying that he has been a part of making the Sixers into a winning team, which is exactly what the fans had hoped.
I’ve been saying it all along, Turner is a way better point guard than Holliday, He has way better vision, Hes more of a true point guard because he has a pass first mentality, I still cant figure why they dont want the ball in his hands, Bottom line is, Hes far from a bust and in a year your gonna see him do things here you saw him do at OS.
Completely disagree with you Andrew. Holiday is not a shoot first guy and seems to be what you are implying. I don’t see that at all from him this year or when he was at UCLA either. He has good court vision and he is a better all around player than Turner.
Turner is a 2 guard who, at this point, can’t shoot. I don’t think that he is a bust, but when you are drafted #2 overall, there are certain expectations that go along with it.
Turner is a decent player. I still think Favors and Cousins will be better.
They are smart bringing him along and letting him learn the speed of the NbA.
I think he will be alot like Iggy in a dew years.
I ll say this. Evan turner is already a better scorer than iguodala, so his game
is only going to improve with time and more confidence.
I said a few post ago that I think we should have drafted cousins instead bc center was more of a need and cousins has a chance to be very dominate at that position.
We have players similiar to turner already. But I like turners game if he continues to improve his defense, court awareness, and shooting he ll be a superstar
He has tremendous upside, but I’m concerned that cousins may have more
But props to ET he’s playing with a lot of heart and I hope he continues to.
Soon he ll be starting again if he keeps this up!
bugsyhawk, You must not be paying attention, the passes that turner give while players are in stride shows hes a natural, some things you cant teach, I see guys open time and time again that Holliday doesnt even give a thought to, Theirs no way you can tell me a point guard is suppose to take an inbounds pass and take it hisself all the way to the basket, I can see once in a while but not a couple times a game, thats crazy, Keep your eye on how many times a game he does that and how many times he shoots first once he gets the ball half court then tell me the last time you saw a true point guard like Kdd, Nash, Williams ect. do that.
It was weird not seeing ET in the rook/soph game being that he was the 2nd ovr pick, and I noticed since then he’s been playing in a motivated way, he won’t say it but he was embarassed about not being picked to play in the game and he should be. So this may have helped the sixers more than hurt them bc if he would have went and played it would have been handed to him and he didn’t work for it.
He was a king at OS whether they’d win or lose. Here in philly its a totally different situation, and he’s playing like he knows that. So not being picked to play at the rook/soph game and him not starting now is keeping him hungry and motivated
Turner is a bust. He’s trash. He does everything well and NOTHING outstanding. Which means hes nothing more than a roleplayer, a bench warmer, a guy that might come in a give you a spark but can’t carry you to a championship. With the second pick in the draft the Sixers needed a cornerstone. Demarcus would have been that cornerstone.
Turner has been playing better, but still not playing well.
He still misses tons of wide open mid-range jumpers.
If you’re not going to have 3pt range, you have to have a great mid-range game or you’re just E-Snow without the lockdown defense.
Guys guys calm down he’s a rookie, you can’t give someone the title bust until at least there third season,
Birdo, I think ur upset the sixers didn’t pick cousins so ur not giving the kid a chance, hey I’m Mad they didn’t pick cousins too but they didn’t get a bum in turner
Like I said if he improves his game and I feel he will he ll be a superstar in this league
the only person talking sense on here (besides Eliot) is EBG.
Turner may have some passing skills and court vision – but that doesn’t make him a PG. He’s a natural athelete so he does many things well. He’s been struggling with this shooting so Collins is bringing in a guru to help with that, and hence, he’s been passing instead of the shot recently. That’s all. No more to see here. I say Holliday is shaping up quite nicely at the point and if Collins think Holliday is a better PG, and Turner is best suited to play the 2 (sound familiar, like what’s actually going on?), then I defer to the expert coach, not a fan on a blog.
And forget about who you wanted in the draft. Get over it. The sixers needed a big, still do, but they weren’t going to become a contender over night. So they picked Turner, a great prospect and excellent athelete, and it seems like in time that will be a great choice.
But to call the guy a bust, that just exposes you as a reactionary casual fan who either doesn’t know anything about sports and realistic expectations, or someone who chooses not to use their brain in lieu of just being emotional.
Turner is TRASH in terms of “superstar” standards. Name ONE thing in which he EXCELS at? He can’t shoot. His passing is marginal. His rebounding is ok. His athleticism is enough to be in the NBA but has he even made a Sportscenter Top 10 yet? He gets his stats MOST of the time in garbage time of blowouts in which we already have the game in hand. He’s not fast. His dribbling is less than desired (for a guard). WHAT, and I repeat, WHAT does Turner do better than the rest that gives some of you fluffers hope for the future?
Birdo ur a turner hater for some reason, and ur picking a dumb time to talk about the kid being that he’s playing much better and with more confidence
They said about turner coming out of college that he isn’t Great at just one thing but excels and everything bc he’s an all around player, he may not look flashy every play but he gets it done
Birdo, ur calling him a bust and trash and he’s a rookie showing promise, you obviously don’t know basketball like SCHILLER said, you sound like someone that’s a hockey fan that since you may live in philly it means you know all the philly teams
Now when Turners game evolves into superstar status I ll be waiting to hear what you gotta say Birdo
ET is a work in progress and so is this entire team, we need to just sit back and enjoy watching this young team grow
I think ET has more upside as a NBA player than Eagles QB Koldb does as
#1 Starter in the NFL
I also think the Phils will not go to or win a WS in 2011
I also think that a Gallon of Gasoline will approach the $4.25 range come Memorial Day HOliday
I also think the President Obama will win in a close re-election for POTUS
against Republican Nominee Tim Pawlenty
Turner was not worthy of the second pick in the draft. He’s a late first to early second round talent. He will be nothing more than a roleplayer his whole career. His “all-around” game shows me that. If Turner ends up becoming an all-star player, I’ll take it all back. But right now, his shooting is horrible. And that’s a big part of being a SHOOTING guard. I just don’t see it in this kid. I don’t see “superstardom” on his forehead like some of you claim he’s going to be. He wasn’t worthy of the pick — plain and simple.
A Late 1st or Early 2nd Round Selection is crazy Birdo..
He was a Top #5 pick by 99 % of the Scouts/NBA Osbservorsand given time, will develop into a good,solid NBA player..
Paulman, if Turner doesn’t win POTY, he doesn’t get selected in the top TEN yet alone the 2nd pick in the draft. I really don’t know what the Sixers were thinking with this pick. They have about four or five players on the team that are virtually the same player (albeit some better than others). People are saying the same thing about Turner that they said about Iggy when Iggy was a rookie — “wait until he gets a few years under his belt, he’s going to be a superstar, his shot is going to improve, his athleticism is off the charts” and blah blah blah. That was said about Iggy and Iggy showed ALOT more in his rookie season than ET has. Now, we can all agree that Iggy HAS NOT lived up to expectations. Part of the reason to get rid of Iverson was to hand the team over to Iggy and although he shows flashes at times, he’s not a number one option and is barely a number two option. Iggy would excel if he took a “lamar odom type” role on a team. I’m just saying, we’ve been through this same song and dance with Iggy and we see how that turned out. ET will never be better than Iguodala and Iguodala isn’t someone to write home about — aside from his amazing leaping ability.
lol you gotta love philly fans. if you want to blame someone for turner not playing well start with collins who for some strange reason did not put him where he should be which is point fwd. he’s big enough to pass over smaller guards and quick enough to go past small fwds.now he’s at pt fwd like he was at college and remember he was player of the year there.
YouNeedJesus….I think you need jesus! I will not…I repeat, I will NOT allow you to speak of the Coach of the Year in the way you are! Doug Collins is a God amongst men!
? Dude lol get a grip