Ever since Memphis frittered away the NCAA Championship Game, there were rumors that John Calipari might be looking to make another try at the NBA. With Derrick Rose, Joey Dorsey and, potentially, Chris Douglas-Roberts heading to the league, the timing seemed right. Yesterday, though, just as Rose was announcing his departure, Coach Cal signed a contract extension to remain as the Tigers coach. We found out why today. Tyreke Evans, McDonald's All-American and all-everything shooting guard, signed a letter of intent to play with the Tigers this afternoon. With all the openings in the starting five, Evans will be expected to shoulder a heavy load during what's widely believed to be his only collegiate season. Evans chose the Tigers over closer-to-home Villanova but it wasn't much of a surprise.
Evans is close to William Wesley, the Zelig of basketball in the United States. Wesley is close to just about everyone in the game but he's especially close to Calipari. The two men worked together to broker Memphis's deal with China and Wesley was close to Rose and it's believed he helped steer him to Memphis.
And then there's the unsavory business surrounding a murder committed by his cousin which Evans witnessed. It's believed to be gang-related and Evans might not mind getting out of Dodge for a while. As MJD points out at The Dagger, it's hard to argue with a recruiting pitch that includes the fact that "no one in Memphis wants to murder you."
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