Kansas Basketball Recruiting Target Tyran Stokes Wins MVP at Jordan Brand Classic

Tyran Stokes added another award to his trophy case this weekend after taking home the MVP award at this year’s Jordan Brand Classic, helping lead Team Air to a 135-133 victory over Team Flight.

The No. 1 recruit in the 2026 class had 29 points on 9-of-17 shooting from the field and 2-of-6 shooting from 3-point range in 24 minutes of play. In that span, he also added eight rebounds, seven assists, and three blocks – proving that he belongs at the top of the high school rankings.

The Jordan Brand Classic is the last of the major high school all-star events following the McDonald’s All-American Game and Nike Hoop Summit. That means we are likely entering the final stretch of Stokes’ recruitment this week with a decision possible any day now.

The transfer portal window closes on Tuesday, April 21, and both Kansas and Kentucky (the top two schools vying for Stokes’ services) should have a good idea of what their rosters for the 2026-27 season will look like by the end of the week. That’s something Stokes has said he’s been monitoring before making a final decision.

Landing Stokes is becoming more and more of a priority for Bill Self and the KU coaching staff as the days go on given their lack of moves thus far in the transfer portal. The Jayhawks have just one player committed and that is Utah transfer Keanu Dawes. And with only Kohl Rosario and (potentially) Paul Mbiya returning as impact players from last year’s team, they’re going to need a lot more firepower if they hope to have any real shot of competing next season.

All eyes will be on Stokes this week as the Jayhawks hope to add a true difference maker to their roster next season.

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