RYAN EVANS "And in large part that's because he has a bet-
ter feel — it's more natural for him in terms of what we want from him in different areas of the court. "You can teach shot fakes and some footwork
in the post. But there are a lot of things that you can't teach and it just comes down to a natural feel.
"He had to build on his instincts because they didn't come as easy as they did for others. Some
guys have that innate ability. Others have to work on it.''
There has never been any issue with Evans' work ethic.
"Ryan spends a lot of time after practice up
in the office watching practice film,'' Gard said. "He'll grab tapes after games and take them home with him. He has become a student of the game.'' Evans developed some good habits at an early age. "I've been taking game tapes home since my freshman year,'' he said. "I kind of pick out the bad clips before Coach Ryan picks them out.'' As far as addressing his "feel''
for the nuances of the game — knowing his own history — Ev- ans said, "You're going to get more of a feel for the game with opportunity.'' Playing opportunities gener- ally top that list. "And with more opportunity,'' he went on, "you're going to get more confidence.'' That's where Evans is today —
more confident than ever with what's being asked of him. "My role is being a team play-
er,'' he said, "and going out there and playing hard.''
Evans has embraced the as- signment. "We know we're in an effective system,'' he said. He also understands the em- phasis on the defensive end. "That's for everybody,'' he
said.
To which he pointed out, "I think we're a little quicker on defense and that's shown. But it has to show more because it (the strength of schedule) is going to escalate more.''
40 » VARSITY DECEMBER 1, 2011
