Louisville freshman basketball player Dennis Evans no longer medically cleared to play

Dennis Evans, a top-five center in the 2023 recruiting cycle, is no longer medically cleared to play for the Louisville men's basketball team — indefinitely.

A team spokesperson, Zach Greenwell, announced the news via a two-sentence statement Thursday evening.

"Freshman center Dennis Evans will not be medically cleared to compete at the University of Louisville moving forward," Greenwell wrote. "We are disappointed by the news and will not be releasing any additional information out of respect for Dennis' privacy."

Evans, a 7-foot-1 freshman from Riverside, California, hadn't suited up for a game since a Nov. 29 win against Bellarmine. The 18-year-old was sidelined due to what the team described only as a shoulder injury.

As of Thursday night, Greenwell said, Evans remained part of the program; and his name still appeared in U of L's campus directory. The university will honor Evans' scholarship if he wishes to continue studying there.

But being part of the program now no longer includes participating in workouts, practices or games. And Greenwell said on behalf of the athletics department that it "does not foresee his status changing with the institution."

Whether Evans is able to continue his playing career hinges on his medical diagnosis, which Greenwell declined to discuss.

Louisville head coach Kenny Payne also declined to offer further details on the situation during a Friday news conference, saying: "Obviously, (I) love Dennis, but, out of respect for his privacy, can't really elaborate a lot on it. But really, really love the kid."

When asked how Evans' teammates reacted to the news, Payne said, "Obviously, if I'm saying I love Dennis, you can imagine what his teammates feel about (him). That's the extent of what we're gonna say about it."

Payne on Tuesday said Evans was "day to day" before the team left on a trip to Virginia. But he did not accompany the team on the trip, nor is he currently on campus.

His former travel ball coach, Elvert "Kool-Aid" Perry, told The Courier Journal on Thursday that Evans is back home, where he's been since the Cardinals adjourned for a holiday break following a Dec. 21 loss to Kentucky.

Evans appeared in Louisville's first seven games of the season, of which he started five. His runs began dwindling, however, during a trip to New York for the Empire Classic onward; from 13 minutes against Texas to seven minutes against Indiana to three minutes against New Mexico State and five minutes against Bellarmine.

"I'm not sitting here saying, 'I don't need him' and 'I can afford to sit him down.' He needs to develop," Payne said Nov. 28 when asked about Evans' decline in playing time. "That's why he came here, to develop (into) a good player. But there's a point in time in this where he has to watch and observe a little bit and say, 'OK, I got to get better.'"

Evans' stat line: 11 points on 5-for-8 shooting with six rebounds and five blocks across 64 minutes (9.1 per game). Seven of those points came during U of L's season-opening win vs. UMBC, in which he played a career-high 16 minutes.

Evans initially signed to play at Minnesota but asked to be released from his letter of intent last February. He verbally committed to Louisville less than a month later.

Upon Evans' signing in April, Payne said in a statement that it was going to be "a joy to watch him grow and become one of the best players in college basketball."

"There's no limit," he added, "on the potential of how good he can be."

One reason Evans chose U of L is because Payne developed centers such as Anthony Davis and Karl-Anthony Towns into No. 1 overall NBA draft picks during his time as an assistant on John Calipari's staff at Kentucky. Evans said Payne told him getting to that level would be "a challenge," but it was one he embraced.

Evans also said he was motivated to help Payne rebuild his alma mater as its first 7-footer since Anas Mahmoud.

"It definitely plays a role, wanting to get back to the level of success they used to have," he told The Courier Journal in May. "Getting back to being able to compete at the highest level possible."

His potential was obvious. So, too, was his room for improvement.

Evans' 9-8 standing reach and 7-7 wingspan make him an elite rim protector whose dunks look about as casual as a walk in the park. And the "greatest thing" about him, Payne said, is this: "every single day, he comes in here and tries to learn as much as possible."

But, as the regular season progressed, he struggled to hold his own more often than not with his 215-pound frame in the post while adjusting to the speed and physicality of the Division I ranks. And that was after Payne said his body underwent "drastic" changes upon arriving on campus for summer workouts.

"Dennis hasn't even touched the surface of how good he's going to be," Payne told reporters in October. "We just got to continue to pour water on him and continue to let him grow."

Evans is the third member of Payne's 2023 recruiting class who is no longer playing for the Cards.

In August, five-star signee Trentyn Flowers left the program to pursue a professional career in Australia. And last month, junior college transfer Koron Davis was dismissed from the team.

Reach Louisville men's basketball reporter Brooks Holton at bholton@gannett.com and follow him on X at @brooksHolton.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville basketball: Dennis Evans not medically cleared to play