Has a leader emerged for KJ Evans? 5-star goes in-depth on last two visits
KJ Evans is the 2023 On3 Consensus No. 4 prospect. The 6-foot-10 forward at Montverde (FL) Academy is coming off a Geico National High School Championship.
“I am more physical now, strong after that year at Montverde,” Evans told On3. “I am more vocal on the court, more assertive and energized on the floor.”
His unique style has caught the eye of college programs since middle school. On3 caught up with KJ Evans at EYBL Louisville to see which visits he had set and where his mind was.
“I have taken official visits to Kentucky and Oregon,” Evans said. “I am going to Arizona this week.”
Evans talks recruitment
Kentucky: “I learned a lot about Coach Cal (John Calipari) on that visit. Of course, we all knew about him already. The school, the pedigree, and the people are all nice around there. The people I met there were memorable, and the facilities too.”
Oregon: “They have everything over there. Looking back at it from the outside, it was really nice. It is a quiet town, but it has a lot to do. It is a good place to put your head down and get to work. The Nike facility was crazy; I saw it all in there, to be honest.”
Arizona: “I have a genuine relationship with Tommy Lloyd; that stands out for me. I also want to get out to Arizona and see what it’s all about. They want me to come in and play like a skilled big, a mismatch four. They want me to shoot the ball more and handle the ball.”
Three visits down, two to go
“I still have two more visits left. I am looking at Auburn and Indiana to get those visits,” Evans said.
Indiana: “I had teammates who went up there. Coach (Mike) Woodson came to see me. They are in constant contact with me. They’re just nice coaches up there.”
Auburn: “I mean, Jabari Smith just came through there. He is a skilled big man and about to get drafted. I want to get down there, see Bruce Pearl, and really just see how they will use me. Seeing what Jabari did was big, and I would like to see if they can use me like that too.”
The G-League
“We have been in contact with the G-League,” Evans said. “They haven’t talked with me personally, but they have talked a lot to my people. They have put some stuff together for me. I haven’t talked with my parents about it yet, but I will know more once I do. The G-League is definitely an option for me; not sure yet, maybe.”
Evans’ take
“I will be looking closely at where I fit,” Evans said. “The school stuff will be big for me, setting me up educationally. And NIL will play a part.
On3’s take
It’s the length with KJ Evans, his arms seemingly go forever, and he continues to grow. There is so much there with his game, and it is understandable how he can still be putting it all together. Evans has ball skills to re-initiate offense or grab and go off the rebounds. He has excellent vision, as teams can play through him from a stationary position in the half-court. Evans is a reliable spot shooter when his feet are set. While he is athletic, there is not a lot of pop in his game, but his enormous wingspan makes up for a lot of that. Evans is great in the passing lanes and has excellent timing as a shot-blocker. He will need to continue adding strength, but that will come as he is still young. The upside is enormous, and the light is coming on.
Evans’ On3 NIL Valuation
2023 five-star KJ Evans current On3 NIL Valuation is $15,100. This valuation ranks Evans 65th in high school basketball, with a projection of $201 per post across all social media.
The On3 NIL Valuation is the industry’s leading index that sets the standard market NIL value for high school and college-level athletes. A proprietary algorithm, the On3 NIL Valuation does not act as a tracker of the value of NIL deals an athlete has completed to date. It rather signifies an athlete’s value at a specific moment in time.
The On3 NIL Valuation is comprised of many dynamic data points that focus on three primary categories: social media, athletic performance, and endorsements and collectives.
On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM)
Recruiting is a snap-shot in time. Things can change quickly and drastically when it comes to 16, 17, and 18-year-old prospects making decisions. While this is not final, I have planned my expert pick into On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM) for Evans to attend Arizona. I gave it a 55-percent confidence rating.
As noted above, there will be two more visits and then there is the G-League looming. On3’s RPM algorithm now gives Arizona a 90.6-percent chance of landing Evans. Kentucky sits at 3.9-percent, and Oregon at 3.3-percent.
RPM was released to the public in December. The On3 engineering group teamed up with Spiny.ai to create the industry’s first algorithm and machine and machine learning-based product to predict where athletes will attend college. It factors machine learning, expert predictions, social sentiment, visits, and historical trends. However, expert predictions are still a big piece of the RPM equation.