With COVID-19 spreading rapidly around the NBA and so many players in the league's health and safety protocols, teams are scrambling to find replacement players. One intriguing name that has come up is Tyreke Evans, who has been out of the NBA since a 2019 drug ban. The Sacramento Kings would make plenty of sense for Evans given they're dealing with an outbreak and he started his career there.
Unfortunately, Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee says it's just not possible to sign Evans right now:
Evans, 32, has not been cleared to return to the NBA and still faces a lengthy process before he can be reinstated, the source said, suggesting Evans will not be available as teams scramble to sign replacement players during the league’s current outbreak. Evans became eligible for reinstatement earlier this year, but a player can only be reinstated with the approval of the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association.
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As Anderson notes, “a player banned for drugs must meet certain treatment and rehabilitation requirements before he can be reinstated,” including weekly drug testing that returns negative tests for 12 months before the submission of an application of reinstatement.
While it's unclear just where Evans is in this process, it doesn't seem as if he's that close to getting back on the court. That's unfortunate given this would seem like the perfect timing to return to the NBA and try to make a statement with so many players out.
The Kings drafted Evans with the fourth pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, and he was a star in the making when he won Rookie of the Year by putting up over 20 points per game. His career kind of plateaued after that, though he was still a productive player for the Kings and New Orleans Pelicans. The 32-year-old guard also had an excellent one-year stint with the Memphis Grizzlies in 2017-18 before moving on to the Indiana Pacers for the 2018-19 season, which is when he was hit with the drug ban.
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