His coach told him to "play like you're in Philly."
His captain told him to stop playing like John Stockton.
Tyreke Evans took the advice to heart, which is to say he went back to his playground roots and stopped trying too hard to fit into a system that normally prizes ball movement and unselfishness.
"We play grimy, hard, with a lot of heart," said the native of Chester, Pa., a community just outside of Philadelphia.
Playing without hesitation, Evans scored a season-high 23 points, grabbed a season-high 10 rebounds and hit a season-high five 3-pointers in seven attempts to lead the Pacers to a 99-91 victory over Miami on Friday.