Taylen Kinney Decision Week: What Kansas Basketball Should Expect

Highly touted 5-star prospect Taylen Kinney will finally make his college decision on Sunday, Sept. 28, at 12:15 p.m. CT on CBS Sports HQ. His six finalists are Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisville, Oregon, and the leading Kansas Jayhawks.

Kinney has been projected to choose KU by many recruiting sites, especially after On3 insider Joe Tipton logged a crystal ball prediction for Bill Self and Co. to land the Overtime Elite phenom. Here's what Jayhawk fans should realistically expect ahead of his decision date.

Hope for the Best and Prepare for the Worst

Granted, nearly every recruiting analyst projects Kinney to wind up in Lawrence. All signs point to the Jayhawks earning a commitment from him this weekend.

Kentucky has narrowed its focus to Deron Rippey Jr., a fellow point guard prospect, while KU recently dropped out of his final list. Louisville is also targeting Rippey and beginning to eye several other prospects.

Then again, college basketball recruiting is as fluid as ever, especially in the NIL era. Now, it is always possible for a school to swoop in at the last minute and offer a massive NIL deal that forces a recruit to reconsider their decision.

Arkansas and John Calipari hosted him on an official visit last week in a last-minute attempt to land his services. Could the former recruiting heavyweight at Kentucky pull a fast one on Self and the Jayhawks? It isn't something that should be completely ruled out yet.

There really is no such thing as a sure-fire commitment these days. KU fans likely remember when Mackenzie Mgbako spurned Kansas in favor of Indiana when nearly everyone in the country thought he would be picking the Jayhawks.

Conversely, something similar worked in the program's favor when Flory Bidunga was widely considered an Auburn lock before choosing Kansas.

MORE: Taylen Kinney Talks About Bill Self’s Recruiting Pitch To Come to Kansas

With that said, Kinney would be an incredible addition to the Jayhawks. He averaged 20.1 points, 5.0 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.3 steals with Rod Wave Elite in the OTE League in 2024–25.

At 6-foot-2, he is a lightning-quick point guard who projects as a two-way star. He is continuing to improve as a scorer and would succeed Darryn Peterson as the next elite guard in Lawrence.

We're not saying we don't expect Kinney to commit to the good guys, as it already feels like a done deal and has for over a week. All we're saying is to be prepared for any scenario this weekend, because in today's recruiting landscape, anything is possible.

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