Minnesota head basketball coach Ben Johnson on Monday landed the game-changer that he's been looking for when 7-foot-1, 210-pound center Dennis Evans out of Hillcrest High School in Riverside (CA) announced his commitment to the Golden Gophers.
Evans, the nation's 13th-ranked player in the 2023 recruiting cycle and the No. 3 center committed to the Gophers over TCU.
What the Gophers are getting in Evans:
Evans is a player that from day one will be able to impact the game on both sides of the court. On offense, Evans still has some work to do but the potential is there to be a high-impact player. There will be some struggles early on for Evans but if he continues to progress in his development, he will fit in just fine in Ben Johnson's lineup. He won't just impact the game close to the basket offensively as he's shown the ability to shoot from various points all around the floor. He may never be super-efficient offensively but he'll get the job done.
Defensively is where Evans will be a dynamo and a key piece of Minnesota's future success. With his 7-foot-1 frame, Evans shows the ability to consistently put himself in the right spot to make plays defensively. He's not the fastest when it comes to moving but his frame and wingspan make up for it as well as his basketball IQ, he shows good discipline when it comes to not getting caught by fakes and when he can or can not be on the more physical side.
Overall, Evans is an elite-level prospect, obvious by his five-star rating. That being said, there could be some growing pains early on during his time with Minnesota, he is still quite raw as a basketball player, only playing the game now for a few years. However, as he continues to progress and develop, he has a chance to become a complete all-around player for the Gophers who can win them games on both ends of the court. At the very least, early on in his career, he'll provide the Gophers with an elite rim protector thanks to everything we talked about above as well as his shot-blocking abilities.
His fit on the roster:
Evans, once he arrives on campus for the 2023 season will be in a position to be an impact player right away for the Gophers.
2022 signee Pharrel Payne is a name to watch this season as he garnered more and more hype toward the end of his prep career. Assuming Payne is still on the roster come the 2023-2024 season, the Gophers could have a terrific frontcourt duo in Payne and Evans. Payne who was a power-forward prospect coming out of Park High School in Cottage Grove (MN) could slide back over to power-forward once Evans arrives on campus.
Either way, the Gophers' coaching staff has to love the potential of a Payne and Evans frontcourt potentially leading the way come next year. Especially if Payne is the player that the Gophers believe he could be this upcoming season.
What Evans commitment means for the Gophers:
Despite finishing last in the Big Ten last season, Ben Jonhson has been selling a clear vision on the recruiting trail of what he believes the program could be going forward. The commitment from Evans is just the latest in what has been a strong stretch for the second-year head coach.
We discussed Pharrel Payne above, potentially one of the biggest steals in the 2022 recruiting cycle. But also includes commitments from 2022 signees Jaden Henley, Braedan Carrington, Joshua Ola-Joseph, and Kadyn Betts. Betts was originally a member of the Gophers' 2023 recruiting class but reclassified and is now a member of the Gophers' roster entering this upcoming season.
Minnesota also has a commitment from Rivals250 guard Cameron Christie, making his pairing alongside Evans a very successful 2023 class for Ben Johnson as he enters his second season with the Gophers.
Evans is by far and away the biggest recruiting win for Johnson, representing that despite the lackluster first season under his leadership, the future of the program is still quite bright. Minnesota may never become one of the premier destinations for five-star talents but it could very well become a program where landing commitments from high four-star and five-star level talents could become a common occurrence.
That all being said, landing the talent is the first step. The next step of course is the development of that said talent and finding success on the court. If Johnson and his staff are able to turn the talent into success both for the program and for the players individually, the Evans commitment could be just the first of game-changing talents to come to Minneapolis in the Johnson era of Gophers' basketball.
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