After landing a pledge from four-star shooting guard Luke Barnett, Kansas has vaulted to the top spot in the 2026 class. The pledge from Barnett pushed Big 12 powerhouse past Missouri for the No. 1 position in 2026, per the industry-generated 247Sports Composite. Missouri, out of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), has three 2026 commits and two of them are five-star prospects. The Jayhawks are up to four verbal commits in this cycle, one of whom is a five-star prospect (the other three players are all rated as four-stars).
Kansas’ 2026 Class Vaults To Top After Luke Barnett’s Big Pledge
On Friday, Barnett picked the Jayhawks over finalists Miami and UNLV, according to Rivals. Now a senior at Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana (Calif.), Barnett averaged 21.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.4 steals per game as junior in 2024-25 (h/t MaxPreps). In that season, Mater Dei went 22-9 overall.
Within the 2026 class, his highest national ranking comes via Rivals, which has Barnett at No. 113 overall, No. 27 at shooting guard and No. 13 in California. Both the 247Sports Composite and the Rivals Industry Ranking have him inside the nation’s top-145. Meanwhile, ESPN slots Barnett at No. 18 among shooting guards.
The 6-foot-3 sharpshooter caught the attention of national analysts and scouts with his play this spring and summer on the AAU circuit. He was a member of the 17U team of the Phoenix-based Arizona Unity in Nike’s EYBL league. During the EYBL’s 2025 regular season, Barnett averaged 13.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.1 assists per contest while shooting 38.0% from 3. At Nike’s annual Peach Jam in July, he tallied averages of 11.2 points and 1.8 rebounds per game.
Tyran Stokes Watch
Outside of Barnett, the Jayhawks’ 2026 recruiting class features five-star point guard Taylen Kinney, four-star center Davion Adkins and four-star small forward Trent Perry.
The 6-foot-1 Kinney, out of the Atlanta-based professional league Overtime Elite, chose Kansas in late September (over Arkansas, Kentucky, Indiana, Louisville and Oregon). In early October, the 6-foot-9 Adkins and 6-foot-5 Perry joined Kinney with the Jayhawks. Adkins is a senior at the powerhouse Prolific Prep in Fort Lauderdale (Fla.), while Perry suits up for another big-time high school program, the Link Academy in Branson (Mo.).
Might Kansas add even more pledges to its 2026 class? It’s possible. Jayhawks fans will want to monitor Tyran Stokes of Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks (Calif.) in particular.
A 6-foot-7 forward, Stokes is the No. 1 national prospect in the 2026 cycle. He has a top five of Kentucky, Louisville, Oregon, Kansas and Southern California (USC).
For a while, Kentucky has been deemed the leader in Stokes’ recruitment. However, at least two analysts have recently said that Kansas is making a huge late push for the five-star. Two other high school seniors that Kansas fans should keep an eye on are five-star small forward Maximo Adams from California and five-star center Ethan Taylor, who plays at the Link Academy but is from Shawnee (Kan.).
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