After a recent trend of disappointing seasons, capped off by another first-weekend exit from March Madness this year, Kansas basketball has revamped its entire roster and, in some ways, its philosophy of recruiting. With Tyran Stokes officially committing to KU, he now joins his former AAU teammate, Taylen Kinney and a slew of other young players in Lawrence.
Stokes and Kinney make up one of the most intriguing freshman duos in the entire nation, but there are a handful of other underclassmen who will be thrust into large roles for the Jayhawks. Most notably, Leroy Blyden Jr., who is coming off a very productive season with Toledo. The soon-to-be sophomore was the MAC Freshman of the Year, averaging 16.5 PPG and 4.3 APG.
Kohl Rosario and Paul Mbiya are two more sophomores who will play important roles for Kansas, especially as the only two returning scholarship players from last year’s Jayhawks roster. Both players are in the running to start for KU, but may instead be asked to provide effort, athleticism, and size off the bench.
In addition to Kinney and Stokes, three other freshmen will be suiting up for the Crimson and Blue in Davion Adkins, Trent Perry, and Luke Barnett. Assuming that Kansas does continue to fill out its roster with some other upperclassmen transfers, it’s less likely that we see any of these three make a significant impact on the season.
Stokes, Kinney, and Blyden’s development over the season matters most
Coach Bill Self having five incoming freshmen and four sophomores making up the vast majority of this Jayhawks core will be no small task. With that being said, his priority for player development must be Stokes, Kinney, and Blyden if KU wants a chance to secure their first Final Four since their championship run in 2022.
It is rare for NCAA championship teams to start a freshman, let alone multiple, with the 2015 Duke Blue Devils being the most recent title team to win the whole thing with multiple freshmen starting (Tyus Jones, Jahlil Okafor, and Justise Winslow). The last title team to start a single freshman was the 2024 UConn Huskies, with Stephon Castle being a top 3 player for them.
If the Jayhawks want to break this trend, both Kinney and Stokes are going to have to be playing well beyond the typical 5-star freshman starter by the time March hits. Blyden Jr. will also have to be ready to make a huge jump from the MAC to the intensity and talent of the Big 12.
Much of this will come down to Stokes being able to be a true #1 scoring option at the SF spot and an All-American First Team guy, similar to BYU’s AJ Dybansta last year. Similarly important will be how well Kinney and Blyden Jr. can play off of Stokes and if they can both be efficient three-point shooters and ball handlers.
This young trio needs to be special this year… and there’s a lot of reasons to believe that they can be for the Jayhawks! Rock Chalk!
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