College hoops fans pick 5-star Tyran Stokes’ team among Kentucky, Kansas, Arkansas, and Louisville

Tyran Stokes is the No. 1 ranked player in the Class of 2026 and currently one of the hottest names in college basketball recruiting. With the decision on his future pending, fans are already having fun picking where they think he should go. The 17-year-old forward has a number of big schools chasing his signature, including Kentucky, Kansas, Arkansas, and Louisville.

On Friday, college basketball insider Joe Tipton shared an update on Stokes’ recruitment on X, sparking plenty of reactions from fans in the comments.

“Lmao doesn’t have the best school in the Nation on his list UF …we just getting started on another college BB takeover for a few years,” one fan joked. “Not going to Kansas they spent all their money on the coach and football stadium,” another wrote. “Looks like he’s already picked Notre Dame,” someone else added.

There were also plenty of fans hoping to see him stay local.

“Love to see him come to UK, but he just looks like the type of player that would play for Louisville,” one fan wrote. “Can’t wait to see him put on for his hometown,” another commented. “Bros going to Louisville no doubt. Wish he’d check out IU but still dope to have local talent like this,” another fan added.

Stokes is currently playing high school basketball for Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, California. He has already built a strong résumé for himself despite his young age, and one of his biggest achievements so far was helping Team USA win gold at the 2023 FIBA U16 Americas Championship in Mexico, where he averaged just over 10 points per game.

He recently took an official visit to Lexington to meet with new Kentucky coach Mark Pope, showing how serious the Wildcats are about landing him.

With so much talent and attention around him, Stokes’ college decision will be one of the biggest stories in the coming months.

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Tyran Stokes named a part of U19 World Cup team

USA Basketball announced its 2025 men’s U19 national team for the U19 World Cup via X on Friday.

Stokes was part of the 12 players named for the competition, alongside BYU commit and former teammate AJ Dybantsa.

The team was selected after a long week of training in Colorado Springs, where up to 31 players were initially invited before being trimmed to 12.

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Edited by Yash Singh