Evan Turner to take on expanded role with 76ers

Evan Turner entered the NBA three years ago as the No. 2 overall draft pick, the NCAA Player of the Year for Ohio State, and was considered among the most NBA-ready rookies. However, the Philadelphia 76ers had a wealth of players on the wing, shuffled him back and forth between the starting lineup and the bench and rarely gave him consistent playing time in his first two seasons.

This year, Turner knows exactly what he's walking into, writes Philly.com's John N. Mitchell. He'll be the starting small forward, replacing the departed Andre Iguodala, he'll see a ton of minutes and he'll be expected to rebound, distribute, and, most importantly, score for a team that finished 22nd in the league in points per game. But only when the time calls for it:

"My approach is that last season I got my feet wet. I understand there are big expectations for me in my situation. But the expectations that people have for me, I don't think it's realistic when you look at all the weapons we have. My whole thing is to try to not overdo it and go out and play the game. That's what I'm going to do."

The whole article is worth a read, especially if you like stories about Doug Collins playing with Dr. J.