New season, new role: Senior RayQuan Evans makes 'unique' impact on FSU

In little more than a year with the Florida State men's basketball team, RayQuan Evans has gone from understudy to supporting role to part of the main attraction.

And he has earned rave reviews for his performances in all three.

When Evans signed with Florida State after two years at North Idaho College, he was well aware there was going to be a period of adjustment. He had averaged 18.2 points, 7.4 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game as a sophomore, but he knew he'd never be a one-man show with the Seminoles.

As it turned out, he wouldn't even start one game that first season. Instead, he would serve primarily as a backup to senior point guard Trent Forrest.

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Evans enjoyed some nice individual moments. He scored eight points with four rebounds and three assists in a win over Miami. He delivered a career-high six assists in the Seminoles' ACC championship-clinching victory against Boston College.

But for the most part, his primary objectives were to give Forrest any rest that he needed, bring energy on defense, and learn everything he could from one of the best point guards in school history.

"It was great getting to play with Trent," Evans said. "Being able to compete with him every day, picking his brain, learning from him when he speaks. He was a great leader. When he talked, people listened.

"And coming into a new program, in the ACC -- completely different from junior college -- it was great to be able to pick up on little tips he was giving me. To watch him close up and behind the scenes at practice and things like that. It was a great opportunity to watch him and see how he grew as well."

Evans didn't necessarily show star potential on the court that first season at FSU -- he averaged 3.2 points while playing 11.5 minutes per game -- but he made the transition from scoring guard to facilitator with relative ease.

And Florida State's coaches and players knew he could do so much more.

When Evans arrived in the summer of 2019, he turned heads with his play in pick-up games and individual workouts. It wasn't until the 6-foot-4, 210-pound guard went down with a hamstring injury during preseason drills that he was relegated to a lesser role.

"I had never torn a hamstring before, so I'm assuming that maybe I'm out a couple of weeks," Evans said. "Turns out I've got to miss a lot of preseason practice. So it was difficult for me coming back in."

The biggest thing Evans missed was all of the conditioning work that allows FSU's players to compete so aggressively on defense while also playing a wide-open, open-floor style on offense. After providing Forrest with a couple minutes of rest, Evans would often find himself asking to come out for a breather as well.

But as the Seminoles' ultra-successful 2019-20 season wore on, Evans began to feel like his old self again -- even if he no longer was in the featured roles he enjoyed in high school or junior college.

"Coming into this program, I understood that I wasn't going to be, 'The guy,'" Evans said. "We have multiple guys who were, 'The guy,' on their teams in high school. So my mindset was just to play my role, do what the coaches want me to do, do what my players need me to do, and just accept that."

Evans' role has certainly evolved quickly in 2021.

With five-star freshman Scottie Barnes entering the program and FSU's coaches excited about the impact the 6-8 point guard could have at both ends of the floor, Evans again was asked to come off the bench at the beginning of this season.

There is no shame in that in Leonard Hamilton's program, of course. The Seminoles routinely play nine or 10 men in their rotation, and "sixth men" Mfiondu Kabengele had Patrick Williams have both gone on to be first-round picks in the NBA after not starting at FSU.

But Evans' situation would be even a little different from theirs.

Not only would he, as a senior, be backing up the freshman Barnes, but he also would play a pivotal part in grooming Barnes for the job. Taking each of the lessons he learned from Forrest, along with all of the knowledge he has picked up during his own journey, and sharing it with the talented newcomer.

"He represents that unselfish spirit to the maximum degree," said Hamilton, whose Seminoles will return home to face Clemson this Saturday at 3 p.m. ET (ABC). "He spends all his time talking to Scottie, trying to make sure Scottie knows [what to do]. He's sharing all of his experience.

"Most guys would be competing against each other. That's not what he's about. ... This guy's unique, man. I love him."

Evans downplays his position as Barnes' mentor. He says they have learned plenty from each other this season, and they don't even consider themselves the team's only point guards. They're just as confident in juniors Anthony Polite and RaiQuan Gray taking on that responsibility, and senior M.J. Walker can fill in as well.

"We have a great relationship," Evans said of his rapport with Barnes. "He stays in my ear during games, and I stay in his ear. If I see something that he should make an adjustment to, I'll tell him on the side. If he's out of the game and sees something I should do, he tells me. We have that type of respectful relationship.

"And at the end of the day, we're both trying to win. ... I think we complement each other really well."

That has been especially evident over the last few games.

When FSU returned to action following a two-week break due to coronavirus protocols, Evans received his first start last week against visiting N.C. State. Barnes had missed some practice time due to a strained leg muscle, so the coaches gave Evans the start and had Barnes warm up during the early minutes on an exercise bike.

The results were astounding.

Barnes didn't see any drop in his production -- he is averaging 11.0 points on the season and he had 11 in that game -- but Evans was phenomenal. He scored a career-high 24 points on 9-of-11 shooting and grabbed six rebounds in a 105-73 rout of the Wolfpack.

"I just wanted to set a presence early that if I could draw some attention toward me, then that's going to open up the floor for my guys, and I'll be able to facilitate more," Evans said. "I think that kind of helped our team a lot."

Kind of.

The only negative to come from that N.C. State game was that Barnes twisted his ankle in the second half and would miss the following game against North Carolina. But the Seminoles, with Evans in the starting lineup, have kept on rolling.

They knocked off the Tar Heels at home, 82-75, and then cruised past Louisville on the road, 78-65. Evans scored 10 points with four assists against UNC and then added 11 points against the Cardinals. (Barnes had 10 points and six rebounds in his return.)

Evans is now averaging 8.1 points per game, shooting 47.2 percent from the field, tied with Polite for the team's best 3-point shooting percentage (53.3), and has hit 15 of 16 free throws.

While he won't be looked to for scoring the way he was in junior college -- Evans poured in 32 points in North Idaho's conference championship game as a sophomore -- he is looking to provide more offensive punch while also setting up his teammates.

It's something his coaches have been encouraging him to do all along.

"They stay in my ear sometimes to be more confident," Evans said. "Like I said, I'm trying to be more of a facilitator, and sometimes I pass up a lot of shots because I'm thinking, 'If I make this drive, I can make a play for the next player.' So I kind of shifted from trying to score to trying to be a facilitator, instead of being in between and applying both."

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Echoing the words of his head coach, Evans says the Seminoles are still working to bring out the best in each other. Older players are adapting to being leading men, and newcomers are still getting acclimated to life in the ACC.

Evans is somewhere in the middle. He has earned his first three starts as a Seminole and his offensive production is increasing, yet he is intensely focused on helping Barnes and other teammates become the best versions of themselves.

"We have a lot of great shooters, a lot of great attackers," Evans said. "So for me, to be able to find those players who can shoot and find those players who can attack ... I think it's good for me to grow as a player."

Said Hamilton: "This kid's got something unique about him. And I still think his best basketball is ahead of him. But the guy is good. He's a unique guy."

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