Where are they now? A look at Keenan Evans career after Texas Tech

There may be no better success story in the history of Texas Tech basketball than that of Keenan Evans. That's why he remains a beloved figure some six years after his Red Raider career ended.

Though his time in Lubbock isn't that far in the rearview mirror, it does feel like he played in a different era. Evans went through the college game at a time when players stuck around at a university for four or five years and worked to earn a starring role.

When he was recruited out of Richardson, Texas, Evans was just a 3-star prospect. Along with Texas Tech, he had offers from only Colorado, Colorado State, North Texas, Texas State, Western Kentucky, and Wichita State. 247Sports.com's composite rankings ranked him just the No. 294 player in the class of 2014.

As a freshman, Evans averaged only 5.4 points per game for the Red Raiders. That year, he started only three games. His sophomore season saw him average 8.7 points and 2.9 assists per game as he became a starter.

It was as a junior, though, that he really came into his own. In 2016-17, he scored 15.4 points and dished out three assists per game. That earned him third-team All-Big 12 honors.

It all came together for Evans as a senior in 2017-18. Helping lead his team to the Elite Eight, he posted 17.6 points and 3.2 assists per game. He was named a second-team All-American and was a top-15 finalist for the Wooden Award. Many Tech fans will also forever believe that he would have been the Big 12 Player of the Year and that Tech would have won the Big 12 regular-season crown had Evans not missed time late in that season due to a broken toe, an injury that he would play through in the postseason.

Currently, he ranks 13th in Texas Tech basketball history with 1,571 career points. He is also eighth in career assists with 346. Thus, it is easy to see why he was and is such a beloved member of the Red Raider program.

What has Keenan Evans done since leaving Texas Tech?

Since his time in Lubbock, Evans has continued his basketball career. In fact, he's become a successful player in the European ranks.

After not being drafted into the NBA in 2018, Evans played for two NBA G-League teams, the Grand Rapids Drive and the Delaware Blue Coats. Spending only one year in the G-League (2018-19), he averaged 11.3 points and 3.4 assists per game.

Evans moved to Bosnia-Herzegovina for the 2019-20 season when he was signed by BC Igokea Aleksandrovac. For the 2020-21 season, he was signed by Hapoel Haifa in Israel.

Since then, Evans has been plying his trade in one of the top leagues overseas. Evans has been in the Turkish Airlines Euro League since the 2021-22 season. During that time, he's appeared in 84 games.

He was signed for the 2021-22 season by Maccabi Tel Aviv. Then, he moved to Lithuania for the 2022-23 season after he was signed by BC Zalgiris Kaunas, the team he still plays for to this day.

In all, he's averaged 13.4 points and 3.7 assists per game in the Euro League. What's more, he was averaging 17.3 points and 3.9 rebounds but unfortunately, a severe injury has cut his season short after 34 games.

With his team set to compete in Lithuania’s Betsafe LKL Playoffs, Evans will have to watch from the sidelines after suffering a knee injury that will require surgery. He is expected to miss at least six months.

This is the second major injury he has sustained as a pro after tearing his Achilles tendon in January of 2023. However, the Red Raider legend is keeping a positive attitude.

“Lastly, those of you who know me and know my character understand that situations like this excite me to be even better and stronger (and also finish a season)", he wrote on his team's official social media page. "Can’t respond to everyone but saying a big THANK YOU (ACIU) to all the love and messages I have gotten. God bless you all. Tough times pass and tough people last.”

Evans will forever be a player that the Red Raider fan base loves and pulls for. He provided Tech fans with too many great memories to count and led the program to never-before-seen heights. Now, he's going to have to work his way back from a second major injury in 18 months but Red Raider fans know that it would be unwise to count him out.