Tennessee loses promising freshman to the transfer portal, per report
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Tennessee continued to see players walk out the door via the transfer portal on the first official day of the window.
According to a report by On3 on Tuesday afternoon, guard Amari Evans is planning to enter the transfer portal after just 1 season at Tennessee. The 6-foot-5 Evans showed his promise as a freshman on the defensive end for Rick Barnes’ team this past season, helping the Volunteers advance to the Elite Eight for the third straight year.
Evans also showed glimpses of offensive stardom this past season, scoring 24 points against Vanderbilt in a late-season home loss to the rival Commodores. The Pittsburgh product averaged 4.1 points and 3.2 rebounds per game in his 1 and apparently only season in Knoxville, and also averaged about 1 assist per contest.
He was also pretty durable as a freshman, playing in 35 of Tennessee’s 37 games this past season. Evans’ shooting percentages weren’t great though, as he shot just 41.9% from the field and 22% from 3-point territory, but he’s still another valuable loss for Barnes’ program among many who have already chosen to hit the transfer portal and leave Knoxville.
Before coming to Tennessee, Evans played for Overtime Elite in Atlanta, and now after 1 season at Tennessee he’s apparently set to head elsewhere for his sophomore season.
Besides losing a slew of frontcourt players to the portal, Evans’ reported departure is another hit to the Vols’ backcourt for next season. Fellow guard Bishop Boswell has also decided to enter the transfer portal after spending 2 seasons at Tennessee.
Tennessee advanced to the Elite Eight for the third straight year, once again contending for a national title. Here is what the Kalshi market is currently saying about the top teams it thinks have the best shot to contend for the national championship in the 2026-27 season:
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
