Report: Kings' Tyreke Evans Named NBA's 2010 Rookie Of The Year

SB Nation's Kings blog, Sactown Royalty, has learned that Tyreke Evans will be named Rookie of the Year either Thursday or Friday of this week. Though neither the team nor the NBA has confirmed the news or announced any press conferences, the deal is done, according to an NBA source.

And really, was there ever any question? For months now, Kings fans have been touting Evans' candidacy with shirts reading "'#RekeRoy," a reference to a viral campaign that ultimately sparked support from NBA fans across the country and the world. At one point, Evans even met with President Obama.

But in addition to the interest he created among fans from the west coast to the White House, Evans never left any doubt on the court. After entering the league surrounded by questions about whether he'd effective playing point guard, Evans rendered most of those debates moot with his play. He became the first rookie since LeBron James to average 20 points, 5 assists, and 5 rebounds, and instantly rejuvenated hope for a Kings franchise that's been stagnant in recent years.

The only question in all this was whether Golden State's Stephen Curry might steal the award at the last moment. As Sactown Royalty explains, the Warriors PR staff made a significant push:

Golden State PR personnel are believed to have contacted nearly every voter outside of Sacramento by phone or e-mail (or in some cases both) with a detailed case for Curry based primarily on his shooting efficiency, his five games with at least 30 points and 10 assists and his improved numbers over the second half of the season. In the pitch, Golden State boasted that although Evans won the rookie scoring title by a substantial distance (20.1 to 17.5), if you only count Curry's numbers after December 31, he would averaged (21.1 points). Evans averaged just over 20 points per game from January on.

Ultimately, though, as far as Stephen Curry vs. Tyreke Evans is concerned, Sactown Royalty's Tom Ziller said it best: "You come upon two bags of gold. One is about twice as large as the other. There's a note on a chair in between the bags which, in Gilbert Arenas's handwriting, reads "Pick 1." Do you take the smaller bag of gold or the larger bag of gold? If you take the smaller bag, you are not as smart as you think, and you are probably a weakling hipster who couldn't lift the larger bag anyways. If you take the larger bag, congratulations, you used common sense.

Such is the choice between Tyreke Evans and Stephen Curry. Sure, Curry has been fantastic since, oh, January. But Evans has been every bit as good over that stretch. And also, Evans didn't suck in November and December. Of late, Evans and Curry have produced similar numbers. Evans has been doing it all year. Curry has been doing it since the midway point. Ergo, Evans is the larger bag of gold. Don't outsmart yourself."

And this year, the voters didn't outsmart themselves. After about as magical a rookie season as you could imagine for anyone, Tyreke Evans is your 2010 Rookie of the Year. But is he a point guard???

For more check out SB Nation's Sactown Royalty.