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Versatility has always been valued in the NBA but in the modern era, it’s more important than ever. Players with more simplistic games, such as three-point specialists and traditional rim-runners, still have a role to play. Nonetheless, teams have begun to see multi-faceted players as a necessity more than a luxury.
That’s what makes the emergence of Brooklyn Nets forward Tosan Evbuomwan so fascinating. The 23-year-old went undrafted in the 2023 NBA Draft cycle. Given his background, which was covered in detail by USA Today’s Tom Schad, it was to be expected.
Nets Uncover Hidden Gem With Tosan Evbuomwan
Evbuomwan’s father, Isaac, used to play basketball in Nigeria. As a result, he was introduced to the game early in life. However, he didn’t begin playing organized basketball until he was 14, preferring soccer.
Soon enough though, he was representing Great Britain in the U-18 FIBA European Championships. As the son of a doctor, it probably shouldn’t be surprising that he decided to enroll at Princeton, an Ivy League school. Yet, the atmosphere was fitting for his personality, poise, and maturity. In fact, when the Ivy League cancelled their 2020-21 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Evbuomwan decided to use that time to practice with a professional team.
With that being said, the Tigers have only produced 11 NBA players. So, despite leaving Princeton as one of their most decorated talents, he was already facing an uphill battle. Because Ivy League players tend to lack the talent level and physical tools NBA teams are looking for, they’re almost automatically overlooked. Fortunately for Evbuomwan, he’s the opposite of what the league’s franchises have come to expect, with one caveat.
At 6-foot-7 and 217 pounds, he’s as intelligent as he is skilled.
Not Your Average Smart Guy
Since signing a two-way contract with the Nets on Jan. 1, Evbuomwan has been a revelation in Brooklyn. In 14 games. he’s averaged 9.9 points in 24.4 minutes per game, shooting 45.0 percent from the field. He’s scored in double-figures in six games, with his season-high (22 points) coming against the Utah Jazz on Jan. 12. Capable of getting it done from all three levels, he’s at his best in the paint due to his touch and ability to get to his spots.
His numbers don’t reflect it, as he’s averaging 1.4 assists per game. However, this is partially due to the Nets’ overall talent deficiency, as he’s averaging 3.0 potential assists per game. In any case, he’s one of the most heady playmakers on the team, finding teammates at the rim or beyond the arc. Furthermore, because he’s capable of handling the ball, he doesn’t have to rely on post-ups or short rolls. He can make live passes off-the-dribble as well.
Newest net Tosan Evbuomwan with great defense then the block on Ben Sheppard and blocks his shot pic.twitter.com/ThIULsdLRB
— Nets Film Room (@NetsFilm) January 7, 2025
Add to that his multi-positional defense and he’s a player who could have a long career. His three-point percentage (.316) could certainly stand to improve. Nevertheless, he’s already quite advanced as a player relative to his age and experience.
More must-reads:
- LeBron James proposes an intriguing NBA change
- NBA names Kyle Filipowski Summer League MVP, announces All-SL teams
- The 'NBA all-time 50-point game leaders' quiz
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TODAY'S BEST
Knicks Granted Permission to Interview Timberwolves Coach
The New York Knicks are right back to trying to speak with other coaches across the NBA, but their plan is much clearer this time around. They settled on a new head coach in Mike Brown to open July, capping a long month of wildly calling up some of their rival teams across the league and attempting to poach their presently-employed coaches. Now, they're attempting to fill out Brown's staff of assistants, putting them right back on the prowl. They were granted permission to speak with Minnesota Timberwolves assistant coach Pablo Prigioni on Tuesday morning, SNY Knicks insider Ian Begley reported. Prigioni is well-liked around the league, having himself been a player until about a decade ago. He was the rare 35-year-old NBA rookie in 2012, with the zippy Argentinian point guard getting his career started with the Knicks before journeying to two other teams around the association. He'd enjoyed a colorful career across various European basketball leagues, where he returned for one last ride in 2016. Prigioni came right back to the states after enjoying his retirement tour, and has spent his last six seasons as a highly-prioritized assistant coach in Minnesota. He's enjoyed a few brief stints as the Wolves' offensive coordinator, perhaps fitting into Brown's pace and space vision with the Knicks. He's reportedly the first assistant coaching candidate the team's spoken to since making their head coaching hire official.
Could this young forward answer multiple questions for the Rangers?
Through much of his time with the New York Rangers, Mika Zibanejad has been too good to be a second-line center, yet not quite a top liner for a contender. Now aging out of his prime, his play has dropped off the past two seasons, only rebounding when moved to the wing next to midseason acquisition J.T. Miller. That presents a problem for New York. The Rangers are not deep down the middle. Moving Zibanejad back to center provides that depth, putting Vincent Trochek back in his appropriate 3C role. But does Zibanejad again suffer without Miller? It also leaves the Blueshirts thin on the right side. Zibanejad can’t play two positions at once and the Rangers cannot rob Peter to pay Paul. There is a solution, however: Anaheim Ducks forward Mason McTavish. Anaheim and New York already have strong front office ties, with a pair of trades in the past eight months. The cross-continental line should be open. McTavish is precisely the player archetype that Rangers general manager Chris Drury has sought in this past year. The 22-year-old possesses good size (6-foot-1, 219 pounds) and plays with a grit that Drury adores. An old-fashioned power forward in the making, McTavish hunts bodies, making life miserable for defenders on the forecheck and finds pockets of space when off the puck, where he unloads a cannon of a shot. An all-situations player, McTavish digs in the corners and is developing nicely as an offensive driver. McTavish is a hard worker who shows leadership traits. New Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan loves to play with speed and relentless pressure, a mantra that suits McTavish down to the ground. For a second-line center, McTavish’s numbers don’t exactly pop off the page, but 52 points (22 goals) in 76 games for a bad Ducks team is nothing to sneeze at. In New York, he would also presumably get to play with Artemi Panarin and Alexis Lafreniere. Given the playmaking ability of those wingers and McTavish’s heavy shot, 30-plus goals could be on the cards. Bleacher Report has stated that the Ducks are unlikely to extend McTavish an offer sheet, instead willing to match whatever offer comes his way. Does that mean he is on the trade block? At the very least it means that Anaheim will likely be willing to listen to offers. That said, it would take an almighty package to pry the former No. 3 pick out of Orange County. The Ducks would rightly command a first-round pick — if not two — and a highly-rated prospect. New York has its own first-rounders in store, as well as a, likely, late first-rounder next year, with second-round picks each year except 2027. Would New York part with a first, a second and a pair of its top prospects? The Rangers are loaded with left wing prospects. Whilst Gabe Perrault is likely off the table, Brennan Othmann, Adam Sykora and Brett Berard should be discussed, as should defenseman E.J. Emery. Would picks and a pair of prospects be enough for Anaheim, though? Here’s a thought experiment: a deal centered around Will Cuylle. As mentioned, the Rangers have a raft of left wingers coming through and Lafreniere is also a natural left winger. Would trading Cuylle for McTavish solve the Rangers' issues at the pivot, allowing Zibanejad to help fix the right-hand side and give the team room to develop more youngsters on the left? Could this solve three issues in one swoop? It would be a, potentially, seismic move, but it might just make sense for both teams, especially if the Ducks are not looking to keep McTavish around long-term. It would complete a remarkable offseason for Drury.
Is Giants' Joe Schoen already having second thoughts about Jaxson Dart, Shedeur Sanders decision?
The New York Giants were routinely linked with quarterback Shedeur Sanders leading up to the 2025 NFL Draft, but the Giants ultimately traded back into the first round to select Ole Miss signal-caller Jaxson Dart at pick No. 25. For a piece published on Monday, Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News revisited how Giants general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll ended up with Dart instead of Sanders earlier this year. "Members of the Giants’ staff had fawned over Shedeur Sanders," Leonard wrote. "Giants brass had spent a lot more time with Sanders during the fall. Then, Daboll’s increased participation after the NFL season steered the process in a different direction." Sanders allegedly had a rough visit with Daboll ahead of the draft, and a report from early May revealed that "Sanders openly acknowledged during the predraft process that he didn't hit it off with Giants coaches." A different story claimed that Schoen "shifted his preference to Dart this spring as head coach Brian Daboll warmed to Dart as a player and person and Schoen rounded out his own evaluation" before the draft got underway. That said, Schoen raised some eyebrows when he said during a May interview that he knew the club would select Dart over Sanders as of "the week of the draft." Schoen also said the decision was the result of a "collaborative process." According to Leonard, those comments were seen by some as "not exactly a firm endorsement of a player standing out above the rest" as it pertains to the quarterbacks. "...Schoen’s lukewarm rhetoric and reluctance to stick his neck out about Dart caught the attention of some people around the league," Leonard added. "And it has put the rookie in a strange position: trying to validate support that almost sounds conditional." Meanwhile, Sanders fell to the draft's fifth round before the Cleveland Browns traded up to grab him at selection No. 144. As of Monday afternoon, FanDuel Sportsbook had Sanders (+870 odds) and Dart (+1060 odds) as significant betting underdogs to serve as Week 1 starters in September. Cleveland is expected to go with Joe Flacco or Kenny Pickett for its regular-season opener, while Russell Wilson is on track to start for the Giants against the Washington Commanders on Sept. 7. In short, fans may have to wait a long time to learn if Schoen has any buyer's remorse about possibly being talked into drafting Dart when Sanders was on the board.
Matthew Stafford news highlights potential need for Rams
Matthew Stafford's latest injury raises concerns about the depth of the Los Angeles Rams' quarterback room. Stafford suffered a back injury last season, and it's bothering him again at training camp. Rams head coach Sean McVay said the medical concern will force the QB to miss five practices, but it's not season-ending. "He's been throwing, feeling good. It's not necessarily anything that's new. Something that he's dealt with before," the coach told the media. "Going into year 17, we were going to take a modified approach with him, kind of similar to what we did in the offseason program. And so we'll allow him to kind of just work off to the side, on his own, getting himself feeling as good as possible." Stafford's durability has already been waning. The 37-year-old QB missed eight games because of a spine injury and concussion during the 2022 season. The following season, he missed one game because of a right thumb injury. The Rams have a capable backup QB, Jimmy Garoppolo. He has a 43-21 starting record in the regular season in 11 years with the San Francisco 49ers, Las Vegas Raiders, New England Patriots and Rams. Garoppolo, however, is injury-prone. He has battled foot, ankle, knee and shoulder issues over the course of his career. Rams QB Stetson Bennett — a fourth-rounder in the 2023 NFL Draft — has yet to throw a pass in a regular-season game. Plenty of solid free-agent QBs are still available, including one-time Pro Bowler Carson Wentz. He would be a more trustworthy option than Bennett and already knows the Rams' system. The 2016 first-rounder played for the team during the 2023 season. The Rams hope to win their third Super Bowl after consecutive playoff appearances. Injuries at the most important position could derail their aspirations. McVay doesn't seem too concerned about Stafford's health, but L.A. should still consider adding another QB as a precaution.
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