Kansas basketball head coach Bill Self and the KU coaching staff are set to host a big-time visitor as Tyran Stokes, ranked as the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2026 class according to most major recruiting outlets, is scheduled to visit Lawrence this weekend.
Stokes – a 6-foot-7 small forward out of Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, California – is one of the most coveted players in next year’s class. This past year for Notre Dame, Stokes averaged 21 points, 9.3 rebounds, and nearly 4 assists per game. He currently holds offers from KU, Alabama, Kentucky, Auburn, and several others.
Stokes has been rumored to be a potential candidate to reclassify to the 2025 class after announcing he won’t be playing on the AAU circuit this summer, although he has apparently shut down that rumor multiple times over the past several months.
If he were to reclassify, that would be a huge boost to the 2025-26 Kansas roster. The wing/small forward spot is still a big position of need for next year’s team, even after adding Illinois transfer Tre White.
A lineup consisting of Darryn Peterson, Elmarko Jackson, Flory Bidunga, Stokes and White – or perhaps one of the other incoming transfers – would be a dangerous rotation.
This weekend will be Stokes’ first official visit since visiting Louisville last fall, and the fact that KU and Louisville are both Adidas schools should be seen as an encouraging sign for KU’s chances.
If Self can work his magic and convince Stokes to not only commit but reclassify as well, this would be one of the major recruiting wins in a long line of late-spring moves Self has made over his KU coaching career – and one that would have a major impact on KU’s upcoming season.