NLL Insider

The NLL’s more skilled version of Sean Avery, aka Shawn Evans, is exactly what that comparison would suggest.

A ball player that can score but also send an in entire barn into a frenzy based on his extracurriculars.

Rochester’s second half of the “Evans Brothers” continues to bring his ball bustin’ style of lacrosse to the pro game, doing everything that’s been asked of him in the NLL since being drafted second overall in the 2005 entry draft.

Even after only starting ten regular season games with the Peterborough Lakers this past summer, due partially to a trade request to Six Nations, Evans still killed the charts with 5.3 points per game, which woulda had him second to only John Grant and ahead of his big bro, Scott.

The best thing about Evans at the pro level, we probably haven’t even come close to seeing what he’s capable of doing in the NLL.

After years of being “the man” in junior with Minto Cup winning teams in Peterborough and Six Nations, Evans has found himself playing behind names like Grant, Williams, Accursi and again, his big bro, at the pro level. He’s also been asked to play a slightly different role than he was used to in previous seasons, and has done it with a smile on his face.

Last winter, Evans told IL that, “When I first came to Rochester, I wasn’t sure how I’d even fit into that lineup.

I knew I was going to have to play a different role with them if I was going to see any action. I started doing more work off-ball than I was used to and also hustled my ass off to work for looseballs every chance I got. It was a bit different than I was used to.”

Evans continued to alter his pro game throughout the 2008 season, and this year, with Grant out for at least 09, will likely get even more of a workload put on his now three-year-pro shoulders.

The former 19-year-old pro rookie showed last year just how high impact his pro game can be with monster showings against Chicago and Toronto, scoring 11 and seven points respectively. Coincidentally, he also bagged the game winner in both of those games too.

Not a bad resume for a guy that’ll also stand toe-to-toe with anyone in the sport that looks at him the wrong way.

Does Evans belong in the NLL Insider Top 50? Hit the boards and let us know what your Top 50 looks like heading into the 2009 NLL season…

#50 Matt Roik, San Jose Stealth
#49 Jon Sullivan, Minnesota Swarm
#48 Billy Dee Smith, Buffalo Bandits
#47 Steve Toll, Rochester Knighthawks
#46 Jarett Park, New York Titans
#45 Bruce Murray, Colorado Mammoth
#44 Shawn Evans, Rochester Knighthawks

Hit this link for NLL Insider’s Top 50 archive and keep checkin’ back every week as we countdown the top 50 best in the pro game, with #1 being named just before the NLL season kicks off.

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