Moments after receiving arguably the biggest news of his life, former Western Kentucky forward Jeremy Evans began experiencing technical difficulties.

Evans – who was selected by the Utah Jazz with the 55th pick in the 2010 NBA Draft on Thursday night – was instantly bombarded with nearly 90 text messages and voice mails from family and friends minutes after his name was called.

The flood of calls so severely tied up Evans’ phone line that he had trouble getting in touch with both agent Mike Naiditch and the Jazz organization.

The smoke eventually cleared, however, and Evans reached the proper people. Even after the delay in communication, the lanky 6-foot-9 forward was still overwhelmed.

“It was just unbelievable, I’m still speechless and still at a loss for words right now – it’s just crazy,” Evans told the Daily News late Thursday night from his family home in Crossett, Ark. “I thought I had a chance, but I didn’t know what to expect – you watch all those picks go by and then I started wondering whether or not it was going to happen.

“But then, it happened.”

Evans is the second WKU product to be drafted in the last three years. Former standout guard Courtney Lee – currently with the New Jersey Nets – was selected in the first round by the Orlando Magic in 2008.

The lone selection from the Sun Belt Conference on Thursday, Evans also becomes the second Hilltopper to be taken by the Jazz organization. Forward Clarence Martin was taken by Utah with the 61st pick in the 1987 draft.

Evans is WKU’s all-time leading shot blocker with 224, the all-time leader in field-goal percentage (63.9) and is one of only two players in school history with 1,000 points, 750 rebounds and 200 blocks – the other is former star center Chris Marcus.

Considered a long shot at best by nearly every NBA Draft projection, the most consistent knock against Evans was his lack of bulk – he was listed at just 196 pounds during his senior season at WKU.

But Evans spent much of the spring in Chicago working with famed NBA trainer Tim Grover at Attack Athletics, and he put on at least eight pounds of muscle while making a position switch from his natural post spot to small forward.

Apparently the training and versatility – along with a nearly 7-6 wingspan – was enough for Utah.

“It’s one of those things. He’s intriguing,” Jazz general manager Kevin O’Connor told reporters in Utah on Thursday. “There’s some things about him that you can’t teach.”

WKU’s other draft hopeful Thursday, former standout guard A.J. Slaughter, did not hear his name called. Like Evans, Slaughter was considered a long shot.

In a text message to the Daily News this morning, Slaughter indicated he was close to solidifying post-draft plans, but he declined to provide details until his future was official – perhaps as early as this afternoon.

Slaughter, the 2009-10 Sun Belt Preseason Player of the Year and first-team All-Sun Belt performer, told the Daily News last week that he was confident he would wind up in an NBA summer league somewhere as a rookie free agent should he go undrafted.

“We feel like if we don’t get drafted we’ll have the opportunity to still play with a summer league team somewhere,” Slaughter said. “A couple teams have said they really liked me … so we’ll have to wait and see.”

Slaughter is 12th on WKU’s all-time scoring list with 1,581 career points. The Shelbyville native was named the Hilltoppers’ most valuable player after a senior season in which he averaged 17.5 points a game, which was second in the Sun Belt.

As for Evans, the journey to the NBA begins almost immediately. He planned to fly to Utah today for a news conference to announce both himself and Jazz first-round selection Gordon Hayward of Butler. From there, Evans must earn his way onto Utah’s opening day roster. Second-round draft choices do not receive guaranteed contracts.

But Evans said Thursday he’s not bothered by the challenges, as he’s prepared to prove his worth at the next level.

“Right now I’ve just got to prove to people that I can play in the league,” Evans said. “No matter how big I am or my size, whatever they may say, I want to prove I can do it.”

As for all those phone messages? Evans said it might take him a while, but he intends to respond to just about everyone who flooded his phone line.

“You don’t ever want to turn down phone calls, but man, I couldn’t get them all at once,” he laughed. “I might still be calling people back from now until Sunday – it might still be ringing.”