Kansas Recruiting Target Billy White III Commits To ACC School

Veterans Memorial High School (TX) star Billy White III committed to SMU on Thursday evening in his school's gym during a live-stream hosted by the Rivals YouTube channel.

The 6-foot-8 sharpshooter chose the Mustangs over his nine other finalists, which included Kansas, Oklahoma, Virginia, Maryland, Oklahoma State, TCU, Texas A&M, Stanford, and LSU. He also revealed that he will be reclassifying to the 2025 class.

Rated the No. 49 overall prospect and No. 12 small forward in the 2026 class by the 247 Sports Composite, the 4-star standout made an unexpected move by deciding to reclassify.

SMU head coach Andy Enfield landed the fifth pledge of his 2025 class, and it was a big one. He is staying in-state for his college career, but his current school in Corpus Christi is over six hours away from Dallas.

The Jayhawks offered White in June, and although he was not among their top priorities, he remained firmly on KU’s radar.

Despite initially planning to visit Kansas sometime this month, White opted to make his decision earlier ahead of his senior year in high school. He had already scheduled trips to Virginia, SMU, Oklahoma State, TCU, LSU, and Maryland, all of which are postponed.

White is a very promising off-ball prospect, with one of the best pure shooting strokes in his class. As he continues to grow into his frame, he could bud into a solid defender due to his length and versatility.

NEWS: Top-40 overall recruit Billy White III has committed to SMU and will reclassify to the 2025 class, he tells @Rivals.

The 6-8 small forward becomes one of the highest-ranked prospects to ever commit to the Mustangs.https://t.co/5hP1iqjDCR pic.twitter.com/zwRbEUMWPV
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) August 7, 2025

Who Will Kansas Target Next On The Recruiting Trail?

As of today, Kansas does not hold a commitment in the Class of 2026.

Although he missed out on White, Self and his coaching staff are still eyeing several top recruits on the recruiting trail. That list includes 5-star phenoms like Caleb Holt, Tyran Stokes, and Ethan Taylor, to name a few.

MORE: Three Dream Targets for Kansas Basketball in 2026 Recruiting Class

Coach Self is set to host a number of players on campus for visits over the next few months. In August, top-ranked point guard Taylen Kinney (Aug. 22), twin brothers Gavin and Gallagher Placide (Aug. 25), and stock-riser Latrell Allmond (Aug. 28) are the recruits on the visit docket.

Kansas reeled in potential No. 1 NBA Draft pick Darryn Peterson in its 2025 freshman class, so the program would certainly like to assemble another strong group next year.

Right now, Self's top priority on the high school trail appears to be a lead guard and a big man as he looks toward life after Peterson and big man Flory Bidunga, another candidate to move on to the NBA.