Evans Credits Improved Diet For Increased Quickness

[kennadog]

I think it has more to do with being prepared for a job that pays you millions of dollars. Hes out there on the court to give his best, and that means being responsible with his diet. Reke is young, so he may know a bit more now about how a good diet can improve his performance.

Hmmm....I happen to think that a mature person should be prepared for their job whether they earn millions or minimum wage. I don't understand what millions of dollars has to do with it. Everyone should always work to their best ability, regardless of money. And "best ability" is not a constant. Some days a person's best is less than another day. I suspect that we haven't seen Evans peak "best ability" yet.

 

[D13]

Sooooo what. Good for Reke. The kid has had some good games finally, and he is digging deep to realize where the results might be coming from. At least he is keeping track of stuff. Being aware is sometimes a journey.

 

[RookieOfTheDay]

Hmmm....I happen to think that a mature person should be prepared for their job whether they earn millions or minimum wage. I don't understand what millions of dollars has to do with it. Everyone should always work to their best ability, regardless of money. And "best ability" is not a constant.

Sorry but that just doesn't fly. Higher paying jobs require more commitment, more dedication, and more training, that's part of why they pay more to begin with.

 

[rainmaker]

Tyreke isn't "new" to the idea of eating healthy. This is the same guy who had a personal trainer from 8th grade -present. He was taught younger than most that hard work and discipline are needed to be the best. I will make no excuses for Tyreke eating fast food, given he's been working on his body, and paying others to tranform his body, since he was about 14 years old.

I don't have much respect for people who eat fast food for any reason. It's not even real food, is toxic to the body, causes numerous health problems which take a toll on the healthcare system, and my wallet, puts children at risk, and is now causing health problems in central and eastern europe, as well as other places, and american fast food chains go abroad to establish themselves.

When Tyreke has been so intune with his body since a young age, obviously nutrition was a part of it. You never work with a trainer, and don't go over what you should be eating to recover from workouts and prepare for the next. And Tyreke has been doing this since middle school.

I am one of the largest Tyreke supporters on here, but there is no excuse for pro athletes to eat fast food. If only everyone knew the poison which was in it. A happy meal does about as much damage to your body as a pack of cigarettes. If one person smoked a pack of cigarettes a day, and the other had fast food every day, after 10 years, the smoker would be better of the majority of the time.

 

[Bricklayer]

Of course pro athletes eat fast food. I mean good lord, they are just people. In this case people who were in high school a couple of years ago too. They also eat fat filled meals at top restaraunts. And then they go out for drinks at clubs (which is a true source of completely empty calories). They're just people. They aren't machines. And they are not anybody's property. They eat what they want when they want, just like everybody else.

Sometimes they become aware their eating habits have beomce unhealthy, just like everybody else. Adn they try to correct them, just like evertybody else. Now thye have a mauch better support mechanism than most people, they have guaranteeed exercise as well. Trainers, nutritionists, and if they get really dedicated and don't mind the invasion of their privacy, they can even hire a cook. But in the end they are still a 21 yr old kid driving home at 10:00 after a grueling game and having the munchies, and that Jack in the Box sign probably looks just as good to them at those times as it can to everybody else.

In any case, he has hardly looked fat out there. This in all liklihood was just a minor adjustment to try to eat healthier and find some extra spark.

 

[RookieOfTheDay]

I mean good lord, they are jsut people. In this case people who were in high school a couple of years ago too. They also eat fat filled meals at top restaraunts. And then they go ourt for drinks at clubs (which is a true source of completely empty calories). They're just people. They aren't machines. And they are not anybody's property. They eat what they want when they want, just like everybody else.

When being is shape is of utmost importance for you to be able to do your job well, then you can't just "eat what you want". Physical conditioning is part of an NBA player's job and maintaining a good diet is a big part of it.

 

[Spike]

Sorry but that just doesn't fly. Higher paying jobs require more commitment, more dedication, and more training, that's part of why they pay more to begin with.

Bullcrap. The reason they're paid more is because there's more money to go around to pay them. If you're talking about going from teaching to administration, or some other such analogy, then I'll agree with you. Elsewise, we're talking about people playing a basketball game. Let's keep that in perspective.

That aside, the fact that they are being paid millions doesn't make them mature overnight. The Funderburke comment was spot on - even with a personal trainer.
"Hey, it's 11PM. I want a 6 dollar burger, or whatever it's called. No biggie, I'll work it off tomorrow." They may, they may not. They may try to Donte a few Western Bacon Cheeseburgers, which, if I remember, were pretty darn tasty when I was that age. I know better know, and they will too. It's maturation. It doesn't come with a fatter wallet.

 

[Spike]

If one person smoked a pack of cigarettes a day, and the other had fast food every day, after 10 years, the smoker would be better of the majority of the time.

I endorse this message.

 

[Kingster]

My question: who the hell is the team nutritionist, and what is he getting paid to do exactly?

When I worked in the fitness business, I always knew what my clients were eating, they had meal plans, and I monitored their weight from week to week. Given Tyreke couldn't work on his conditioning for a while, wouldn't it make sense for the team nutritionist to focus on his diet?

And if not, and the team wants to give players more freedom, then make damn sure they know why it's important to eat healthy foods. This wasn't anyone in the organization stepping in to help out, it was his mom. I understand mom helping with the psychological part of it, but it's the teams responsibility to be aware of the nutritional aspect.

If Tyreke can't practice frequently, and can't work on his conditioning because of his foot, and Westy is publicly admitting Tyreke isn't in great shape, does fastfood sound like a good idea for keeping weight down? Obviously not. So, was Tyreke on a nutritional program which he ignored, or is there just no supervision or education from the teams nutritionist?

Damned fricken good question. Does this organization even have a nutritionist? It seems like on DAY 1 they should give a lecture to these guys on nutrition. And part of that lecture should include a list of chef's in the area that they've certified to know what they hell they are doing as far as diet is concerned. And then they should highly recommend that these players who are payed millions fork out 60-80K a year to eat right. Or, if they can get away with it under the CBA, the Maloofs should fork out the money and pay for the damned chefs. Donte and Cousins and Tyreke sure could have used them, that's for darned sure.

And look at who Tyreke is going to for nutritional counseling - his mom and grandmother. Has anybody seen those two at the games? Do they look to you like they represent NutriSystems? Do they have a degree in dietetics? Or is this just like the brother teaching Tyreke (or Tyreke teaching himself) how to shoot this past off-season - the blind leading the blind.

 

[Entity]

Yeah I guess they should hire a trainer for each player to follow them around 24/7 and spank their million dollar hands for not eating their veggies. Come on most everybody knows the right thing to do. A large percentage don't do the right thing everytime. If so Alcohol and Tobbaco companies would go under as well as the Billion dollar fast food industry.

 

[RookieOfTheDay]

Bullcrap. The reason they're paid more is because there's more money to go around to pay them.

I’m guessing you either missed, or didn’t understand “part of why”.

we're talking about people playing a basketball game. Let's keep that in perspective.

As long as we’re keeping things in perspective, let’s not forget that there’s millions of dollars, people’s jobs, and reputations on the line in addition people playing a basketball game.

That aside, the fact that they are being paid millions doesn't make them mature overnight.

I never claimed it did. My point was that having money makes maintaining a good diet easier. They have trainers, can afford personal chefs, etc. Having said that, how much maturity does it take to know that you need to watch your diet when you’re a professional athlete?

They may try to Donte a few Western Bacon Cheeseburgers, which, if I remember, were pretty darn tasty when I was that age.

Whether they’re tasty or not is hardly the issue.

The Funderburke comment was spot on - even with a personal trainer.
"Hey, it's 11PM. I want a 6 dollar burger, or whatever it's called. No biggie, I'll work it off tomorrow."

If that was Funderburke’s attitude, then he had a poor work ethic, too. Ray allen hasn’t eaten a cheeseburger in 15 years. Now there’s a guy who gets it and takes his job seriously. We should use him as an example rather than the Funderburkes of the world.

 

[RookieOfTheDay]

Yeah I guess they should hire a trainer for each player to follow them around 24/7 and spank their million dollar hands for not eating their veggies.

I wouldn't go that far, but If I were an owner and had my way I'd at least put a clause in their contract that required them to stay under a certain weight and body fat percentage. You get too fat or out shape, then you sit on the bench without pay until you get back in shape.

 

[Spike]

If that was Funderburke's attitude, then he had a poor work ethic, too. Ray allen hasn't eaten a cheeseburger in 15 years. Now there's a guy who gets it and takes his job seriously. We should use him as an example rather than the Funderburkes of the world.

That was not Fundy's comment - perhaps I was unclear there. The point is that Funderburke wants to help role model for younger players, since it's clear they need guidance and mentoring, just like ALL younger people. As for the rest, we'll agree to disagree, as usual.

 

[RookieOfTheDay]

That was not Fundy's comment - perhaps I was unclear there. The point is that Funderburke wants to help role model for younger players, since it's clear they need guidance and mentoring, just like ALL younger people. As for the rest, we'll agree to disagree, as usual.

Yeah I misunderstood you there. Anyways, these guys are paid a tremendous amount of money to play basketball. It's the least they can do to keep in shape and stay away from food that's bad for them. They owe their employers that. If they can't handle that, maybe they shouldn't be in the league because there's plenty of young talented players who can handle it who'd love to take their place. I'm a bit surprised so many folks are willing to cut them slack on this just because they're young. How about some personal accountability? Have we regressed so far as a society that expecting 20 year olds to be accountable is no longer acceptable?

 

[Vlade4GM]

Evans should just have not said anything about any of it. No wonder he's generally a quiet guy, keeping troubles to himself. His mentioning arious issues has become an excuse for fans to pile on the criticism. His poor play has obviously been bothering him a lot. Probably a lot more than any of us Kings fans.

He's pretty much talked out loud about his struggles this year, because it's obvious he's trying to figure out what he needs to do to correct whatever is wrong. I'm sure he's heard all the "what's wrong with Evans," talk. Maybe all of those issues are the problem or maybe only some of them are or maybe worrying about it all too much is the problem. Hence, his mother's admonition to just go out and play like he knows he can.

I couldn't care less whether he's blunt about what he thinks or spouts off some cliche line. My problem is his mounting excuses shows that there is no big underlying excuse for why he has played poorly, and apparently, his ego is having a hard time coming to terms with that. So perhaps the problem isn't his diet, his health, or his "personal problems," maybe it's just him. He's fishing for something he can put all the blame on, that isn't really on him. It's on some thing he needs to tweek, or wait out. Perhaps he's just not as good as he thinks he is, and he needs to work harder to get better, instead of trying to figure out whether there is some curse on him, or that his tummy is hurting, or whatever is next on his list of excuses.

Maybe he should consider the possibility that perhaps NBA defenses are better geared towards him this year and that he hasn't improved enough from year 1 to year 2 to compensate for it.

 

[Insomniacal Fan]

"I lost a little bit of weight," Evans said. "I've been eating right since my mom's been in town. So I've been getting the speed, and the rhythm I had coming off the last game was pretty good."

I read this more as a generic smalltalk than Evans really looking to solve a problem. "Gee, my mom's apple pie sure is swell" type of stuff.

 

[RookieOfTheDay]

I read this more as a generic smalltalk than Evans really looking to solve a problem. "Gee, my mom's apple pie sure is swell" type of stuff.

Well, he has played well since him mom got to town. So...maybe there's something to it, even if it's only mental.

 

[Bricklayer]

I couldn't care less whether he's blunt about what he thinks or spouts off some cliche line. My problem is his mounting excuses shows that there is no big underlying excuse for why he has played poorly, and apparently, his ego is having a hard time coming to terms with that. So perhaps the problem isn't his diet, his health, or his "personal problems," maybe it's just him. He's fishing for something he can put all the blame on, that isn't really on him. It's on some thing he needs to tweek, or wait out. Perhaps he's just not as good as he thinks he is, and he needs to work harder to get better, instead of trying to figure out whether there is some curse on him, or that his tummy is hurting, or whatever is next on his list of excuses.

Maybe he should consider the possibility that perhaps NBA defenses are better geared towards him this year and that he hasn't improved enough from year 1 to year 2 to compensate for it.

Have NBA defenses abruptly gotten less geared for him this last week or two as he's started to tear them up again?

Much of this stuff is probably all related -- your hurt the ankle, which leads to platar fasciatis, which means you can't work out as hard or practice as long, which slows you down, probably a little depressing/frustrating. And so all of a sudden maximizing your diet becomes more important to try to compenate. And then you can throw in some personal thing that probably would not seem so terribly terrible (probably, depends on what it is) if things were going better, but thrown on top of an already depressing siutation seems unmanageable.

You come into camp healthy and happy, get off to the strong start, team doing ok, then maybe that extra Whopper a week really doesn't matter that much. And when the personal matter comes up, maybe you are up on your toes and confident and abel to handle it. But life rarely works that way, and maybe mom coming to town to explain that to a guy who is still just a kid, still a junior in college really -- a good age to get depressed and screw up -- was enough for him to shake it off. Lide lessons learned hopefully. And things are looking up now for both him and us.

 

[Insomniacal Fan]

Well, he has played well since him mom got to town. So...maybe there's something to it, even if it's only mental.

I do believe it's mental. I do not believe nor do I think Tyreke seriously believes that his Mom's cooking has been the missing ingredient this season.

 

[gunks]

You know, I've been kinda on the "It wouldnt hurt Reke to drop a few pounds" bandwagon since last season.

His strength is great, but its not like he uses it all that much. Reke posts up about once every ten games or so. He's more about his trickseyness. And less weight = more speed/ups = more trickseys!

As a Kings fan it embarasses me to know this much about a Laker, but apparently Kobe bulked up one season...Then slimmed down and was quoted on multiple occasions as saying being lighter helped his game.

I think a 215 Reke would >>> a 225 Reke.

 

[Fear the Putin]

You know, I've been kinda on the "It wouldnt hurt Reke to drop a few pounds" bandwagon since last season.

His strength is great, but its not like he uses it all that much. Reke posts up about once every ten games or so. He's more about his trickseyness. And less weight = more speed/ups = more trickseys!

As a Kings fan it embarasses me to know this much about a Laker, but apparently Kobe bulked up one season...Then slimmed down and was quoted on multiple occasions as saying being lighter helped his game.

I think a 215 Reke would >>> a 225 Reke.

Your right.

Reke doesn't bully people around because he's fatter. He's got natural strength and has a big frame, which allows him to bulldoze people.

Being lighter will not only make him quicker, but help his knees tremendously in the long run.

 

[Bricklayer]

You know, I've been kinda on the "It wouldnt hurt Reke to drop a few pounds" bandwagon since last season.

His strength is great, but its not like he uses it all that much. Reke posts up about once every ten games or so. He's more about his trickseyness. And less weight = more speed/ups = more trickseys!

As a Kings fan it embarasses me to know this much about a Laker, but apparently Kobe bulked up one season...Then slimmed down and was quoted on multiple occasions as saying being lighter helped his game.

I think a 215 Reke would >>> a 225 Reke.

An odd statemnt -- he uses his strength all the time. Although of course there's always too mcuh of a good thing.

 

[Bricklayer]

Your right.

Reke doesn't bully people around because he's fatter. He's got natural strength and has a big frame, which allows him to bulldoze people.

Being lighter will not only make him quicker, but help his knees tremendously in the long run.

One can generally assume the weight he aded over the summer wasn't fat, or he wouldn't have gotten around talking about it.

 

[Vlade4GM]

Have NBA defenses abruptly gotten less geared for him this last week or two as he's started to tear them up again?

Much of this stuff is probably all related -- your hurt the ankle, which leads to platar fasciatis, which means you can't work out as hard or practice as long, which slows you down, probably a little depressing/frustrating. And so all of a sudden maximizing your diet becomes more important to try to compenate. And then you can throw in some personal thing that probably would not seem so terribly terrible (probably, depends on what it is) if things were going better, but thrown on top of an already depressing siutation seems unmanageable.

You come into camp healthy and happy, get off to the strong start, team doing ok, then maybe that extra Whopper a week really doesn't matter that much. And when the personal matter comes up, maybe you are up on your toes and confident and abel to handle it. But life rarely works that way, and maybe mom coming to town to explain that to a guy who is still just a kid, still a junior in college really -- a good age to get depressed and screw up -- was enough for him to shake it off. Lide lessons learned hopefully. And things are looking up now for both him and us.

I don't see how my comment of "NBA defenses are better geared towards him this year" fails to leave room for any good games.

Yes, I'm sure that not only is every excuse he's made the cause of his poor play, but that they're all in a perfectly connected causal chain. That seems like the most likely explanation.

Will you at least consider that he failed to improve his jump shot by a reasonable margin over the offseason? His jump shot is going in at a worse rate than it did last year.

 

[Kingster]

Yeah I guess they should hire a trainer for each player to follow them around 24/7 and spank their million dollar hands for not eating their veggies. Come on most everybody knows the right thing to do. A large percentage don't do the right thing everytime. If so Alcohol and Tobbaco companies would go under as well as the Billion dollar fast food industry.

So your argument is that a lot of players eat like crap and don't take care of themselves, so who gives a ****. This organization is **** if they can't even have their players in shape to play the game. Just try this crap at Miami and see how long it goes on. Riley would probably personally be assessing their fat percentage on a daily basis, with calipers in hand. This cavalier attitude is what breeds mediocrity in an organization.

 

[RookieOfTheDay]

I wonder if Tyreke was involved with this? http://fullcourtpress.kingsconnect.com/archives/8802 If so that's pretty funny.

 

[jcassio]

Sorry but that just doesn't fly. Higher paying jobs require more commitment, more dedication, and more training, that's part of why they pay more to begin with.

What is it about income that makes us think people with wealth should be something more than human? So many people out there are obsessed with putting people so high on a pedestal that they can't help but fall off, largely due to our unrealistic expectations. We do it with celebrities, athletes, politicians. It's a disturbing cycle how we build people up and then throw them under the bus when they disappoint us.

Your assumption that higher paying jobs require more this and more that is... well, flawed. Jobs that don't pay a livable wage don't deserve a maximum commitment, dedication or skill set. It's a compromise on both sides. But jobs that do provide a livable wage, whether it be a janitor or teacher, deserve a maximum commitment. And workers who give that maximum commitment are more happy with their careers. If your commitment only comes after you've hit some income threshold, you'll probably never get there in the first place.

 

[RookieOfTheDay]

What is it about income that makes us think people with wealth should be something more than human?

What is it about maintaining a proper diet for an NBA player that would require super-human abilities?

So many people out there are obsessed with putting people so high on a pedestal that they can't help but fall off, largely due to our unrealistic expectations.

I don’t think expecting a professional athlete to maintain a healthy diet is an unrealistic expectation.

Your assumption that higher paying jobs require more this and more that is... well, flawed.

No it isn’t. High paying jobs pay high because a special skill is required to perform them. Often, a personal sacrifice, such as staying away from cheeseburgers in the case of NBA players is required to maintain that skill.

But jobs that do provide a livable wage, whether it be a janitor or teacher, deserve a maximum commitment. And workers who give that maximum commitment are more happy with their careers. If your commitment only comes after you've hit some income threshold, you'll probably never get there in the first place.

No argument there. That doesn’t change that some jobs demand more commitment than others, though. “Maximum commitment” to me would be committing to whatever the job demands. Maximum commitment for a security guard is hardly tantamount to maximum commitment for an emergency room physician.

We do it with celebrities, athletes, politicians. It's a disturbing cycle how we build people up and then throw them under the bus when they disappoint us.

It depends on what the expectations are. If it’s expecting someone to do their job, then I think that’s reasonable. If it’s expecting them to live up to some ideal standard just because they’re famous, then that’s ridiculous.

 

[Entity]

So your argument is that a lot of players eat like crap and don't take care of themselves, so who gives a ****. This organization is **** if they can't even have their players in shape to play the game. Just try this crap at Miami and see how long it goes on. Riley would probably personally be assessing their fat percentage on a daily basis, with calipers in hand. This cavalier attitude is what breeds mediocrity in an organization.

Miami hmm. What would Riley do if Lebron and Wade gained 20 lbs of fat? bench them. Get real. This is all on the players shoulders. blaming an organization for a player not taking care of his body is stupid. I don't need a nutritionist to tell me that a gallon of ice cream and a couple of big macs are bad for me. you guys are misguided. Do you think a guy making 20 million a year is going to listen to a guy making 1% of that? If a player is dedicated to the game and to the team he will take care of himself If he isn't he becomes Sean May.

 

[Lockehead]

Hmmm....I happen to think that a mature person should be prepared for their job whether they earn millions or minimum wage. I don't understand what millions of dollars has to do with it. Everyone should always work to their best ability, regardless of money. And "best ability" is not a constant. Some days a person's best is less than another day. I suspect that we haven't seen Evans peak "best ability" yet.

Being prepared as in being in top physical shape. That includes having a healthy diet.