Kansas Basketball Absent From CBS Sports’ Preseason Top 25

The verdict is out on the 2026-27 Kansas basketball team, and not all of the reviews are positive. Analysts remain skeptical about the new-look Jayhawks behind No. 1-ranked freshman Tyran Stokes and a group of highly touted transfers.

KU is in the midst of a rough stretch by its standards, failing to make the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament since winning a title in 2022. The Jayhawks haven't exactly done the best job adapting to the new landscape of college basketball with the prominence of the transfer portal and lack of player retention/

KU was the preseason No. 1 team in consecutive years in 2023-24 and 2024-25. A few years later, it may not even be ranked in the Preseason AP Top 25.

Gary Parrish recently released his newest edition of college basketball preseason rankings. It's starting to get to a point where they are no longer "way-too-early," considering KU will compete in its first scrimmage in less than two months.

In his top 25 (actually a top 26, as he adds a bonus team), Kansas is nowhere to be found. There is a real chance that Self and Co. enter the new campaign without a ranking.

Kansas Jayhawks head coach Bill Self yells out during the game against BYU Cougars inside Allen Fieldhouse on Jan. 31, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Will Kansas Enter the 2026-27 Season Unranked?

KU dropped out of the AP Top 25 twice this past season and went unranked for the final five weeks of the previous year. This seems to be becoming a trend for what was once college basketball's most consistent regular-season program.

Surprisingly, only four Big 12 schools made Parrish's list, those being Arizona (No. 6), Iowa State (No. 14), Houston (No. 15), and BYU (No. 21). Unlike the past few years, the SEC and potentially even the Big Ten could be a bit stronger this season due to increased NIL spending.

Some of KU's key contributors aside from Stokes include Toledo transfer Leroy Blyden Jr., Utah transfer Keanu Dawes, and 5-star freshman point guard Taylen Kinney. The Jayhawks are also actively pursuing another player in the transfer portal as the NCAA navigates its eligibility issues with Class of 2022 student-athletes.

These rankings aren't set in stone and won't mean much if the Jayhawks add another player through the portal, but it's proof that the current roster has some holes. Regardless, KU didn't perform well when they were the preseason No. 1 team, so all the Jayhawks can do this season is prove the media wrong.

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