The Kentucky Wildcats, coached by Mark Pope, are presumably back in the mix to recruit Rainier Beach High School star Tyran Stokes for the 2026-27 campaign.
On Wednesday, college sports reporter Mario Maitland uploaded a clip from a recent episode of “Kentucky Sports Radio,” which featured its host, analyst Matt Jones.
Jones discussed two factors as to why Coach Pope and his recruitment team are re-attempting to recruit Stokes. Jones believes the Wildcats have given Stokes a higher offer than their previous one and are now putting all of their effort towards him. Stokes has yet to announce his collegiate hoops commitment.
“ Well, I’ve heard two things, one of which I can’t say with confidence, but the second of which I think I can. Kentucky has upped their offer to Stokes. So, at least I think as of now, Kentucky may be offering a little bit more than Kansas for Stokes… So, I think Kentucky is putting everything they’ve got into it. Now, there’s the second thing, which I don’t want to say ’cause I don’t wanna be wrong,” Jones said. (0:45)
“But, I’ve heard that like the whole university is trying to figure out how to make Stokes work, and so we’ll see. But they certainly haven’t given up on him…Do you think he can work with Pope? I mean, everything we’ve talked about relating to the modern player, I mean, Stokes is considered example A of the modern player,” he continued.
Stokes is the No. 1 overall recruit in the high school class of 2026 among all five-star prospects. The 6’7 forward is wrapping up his stellar high school hoops tenure, but has yet to announce anything about his future. Pope and the Wildcats are fresh off the 2025-26 campaign, in which they were eliminated in the second round of the national tournament.
Matt Jones Says Tyran Stokes Still Not Announcing, Even With Bill Self Back, Gives Mark Pope A Better Shot
For some time now, it has been largely considered that Tyran Stokes’ primary choice is the Kansas Jayhawks program, and he is just waiting for its head coach, Bill Self, to announce his future.
Since then, Self has announced that he will coach the team in the 2026-27 season, but Stokes has yet to say anything about himself. With this, Matt Jones believes this is a sign that gives Mark Pope and his squad a better chance at snagging Stokes.
“Now, Stokes has been very clear that Kansas is his first choice. So, I do think though, the longer this goes, the better Kentucky has a shot. You know, I think if he had decided last week it was gonna be Kansas and remember, he had an announcement and people think he postponed it to see if Self was coming back. But, Self’s now coming back and we still don’t have an announcement,” Jones shared. (0:18)
Also Read: “Good Luck Getting Year 4”: Mark Pope’s Job on the Line as Insider Warns of Dire Consequences
Read More: Kentucky Basketball Recruiting: Will Bill Self’s Return To Kansas End Mark Pope’s Chances Of Landing Tyran Stokes?
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