A year ago, Gopher fans were eagerly anticipating that Kyan Evans would follow Niko Medved from Colorado State to Minnesota. Instead, Evans was offered an NIL deal that he couldn’t refuse from North Carolina and he took it. But he is back in the portal and this year he is coming to play in Minnesota for his old coach.
Evans visited Minnesota earlier in the week and gave Gopher fans significant heartburn as he left Minnesota without committing and headed to Iowa for a visit. Iowa City offered a location
closer to his hometown of Kansas City and the Hawkeyes also had Cam Manyawu, a former high school teammate of Evans. But ultimately, Evans chose Minnesota.
Kyan Evans
Pos: G
Ht: 6’2”
Wt: 175
His year with the Tar Heels did not go as well as he had hoped. Evans was a starting guard for the first 17 games of the season, averaging just under 24 minutes per game and close to six points. And then he was moved to a bench role, saw his minutes drop to 10.5 per game and scored 31 total points in the team’s final 16 games.
What we don’t exactly know is why he was relegated to the bench. It could be that he just wasn’t able to handle the bright lights of playing for UNC. Or perhaps it was just a really bad fit with Hubert Davis and what they were trying to run. Or maybe it was just Hubert Davis, as Evans isn’t the first recruit who took a step back after transferring to UNC.
What we do know is that Evans and his skill set are a very good match for Medved and what he is trying to run here. As a sophomore at Colorado State, he shot 44% from three, averaged 10.5 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists per game. He was 6/9 from three in their first-round upset win over the 5-seed Memphis in the NCAA Tournament. And he got stronger as that 2024-25 season went on, averaging 13.5 points in February and March.
We know that his skill set marries well with Medved’s offense and defense. This was probably the most anticipated transfer of this year’s portal season and it came together quickly.
What is next?
So what does this mean?
Evans should be coming in to be a major contributor, starting in the backcourt alongside Isaac Asuma. Both guards can handle the point or play off the ball, similar to how Asuma and Langston Reynolds shared point guard duties. Evans is essentially the Reynolds replacement. He will be a significantly better shooter, but will not be as strong going to the basket and finishing. They are different players, playing the same position. The boost in shooting should help the offense.
The addition of Evans solidifies the starting backcourt. This is a great addition and the roster is coming into focus. I would imagine that the rotation is going to look something like this.
PG – Evans
SG – Asuma
SF – Durkin
PF – Crocker-Johnson
C – TBD
Bench – Grayson Grove
Bench – Nolan Groves
Bench – Winters Grady
Bench – Kai Shinholster
Bench – Nolen Anderson
Bench – Cedric Tomes
Bench – Malick Kordel
Bench – Chadrack Mpoyi
There is a solid eight or nine-man rotation there. A starting center is the missing piece.
