The Kansas basketball team might be getting good news this weekend, as highly-ranked prep point guard Taylen Kinney is set to announce where he intends to attend college.
According to Joe Tipton from On3, the Jayhawks are one of six finalists, along with Arkansas, Louisville, Oregon, Indiana, and Kentucky.
NEWS: 2026 Top-15 recruit Tay Kinney will announce his college commitment on September 28th, a source tells @Rivals.
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) September 11, 2025
The 6-3 point guard updates his recruitment as he narrows in on a decision: https://t.co/LzmvGlEpUf pic.twitter.com/3p6pq4auo2
How could Taylen Kinney help the Kansas basketball team in 2026
Tipton believes KU is the favorite to land Kinney, but not overwhelmingly so. Tipton gives the Jayhawks about a 60 percent chance of adding the talented point guard.
NEW: Rivals’ @TiptonEdits has logged an expert prediction for Kansas to land 4-star PG Tay Kinney🔴🔵
— Rivals (@Rivals) September 12, 2025
Kinney is the No. 3 PG in the 2026 class.
Read: https://t.co/l3PVCKkAKn pic.twitter.com/OTQsJTB2BI
Kinney plays in the Overtime Elite league, and Kansas has a recent history of mining talent from that league. Current Jayhawks Bryson Tiller, Kohl Rosario, and Samis Calderon all played in Overtime Elite.
247Sports ranks Kinney as the 17th-best overall prospect and the second-best point guard in his class. With Darryn Peterson, an almost certain one-and-done player, set to leave for the NBA after this season, Kansas head coach is looking for a top point guard to take Peterson’s place next year. Kinney could fill that void.
If Kinney chooses Kansas, and that is far from a lock, he might cause other recruiting dominoes to start falling. So far, KU has no verbal commitments from the players it is recruiting. Maybe landing Kinney will convince others to join him in the crimson and blue.
Adam Finkelstein’s scouting report on 247Sports indicates that Kinney possesses the skill set Kansas head coach Bill Self favors.
"Kinney is a scoring and playmaking lead guard who is smooth and versatile with his attack...He’s great in drive-and-kick actions, can make pick-and-roll reads, and understands how to feed the post. He also has a pretty good feel, even while in attack mode...Defensively, he’s good with his hands (1.3 steals in 3SSB play) and shown flashes of being able to blow-up ball screens when he’s fully engaged on that end..."Adam Finkelstein
Kinney will make his decision on Sunday, September 28, at 12:15 CDT on CBS Sports HQ. Kansas fans should be excited if he selects the Jayhawks, but respectful of his choice if he goes elsewhere. He would be a terrific addition to what is looking to be a fantastic roster next year.