For a guy the 76ers pictured as their shooting guard of the future, Evan Turner struggled with the shooting part of that job his rookie year. He shot 37.1 percent from three to nine feet out, 37.6 percent form 10 to 15 feet, 37 percent from 16 feet to the arc and 31.8 percent from three.
So this summer, he has been reworking that jump shot (specifically where to place his guide hand).
Turner talked with Kate Fagan of the Philadelphia Inquirer and spoke of the confidence that resulted from that work.“I feel like I’m back to my old self. I feel like my new shot is smoother. I have a lot of confidence in it. It’s going well….
“Well, I knew I had a hitch in my shot. I just wanted to get it together. I didn’t want to shoot any balls short anymore. I wanted to understand the basic principles of jump shooting, all of that, what to look for. (Hall of fame coach Herb) Magee has been helping me out a lot.”We’ll see how that translates into games. (Well, eventually we’ll see how it translates.) But Turner has put in the work and if the shot start to fall from the outside he can be a key fit next to Jrue Holiday in the back court (and let the Sixers keep bringing the game changing of Lou Williams off the bench).