Razorbacks' grit should benefit in recruitment of top prospect

Rumors swirled that he would potentially skip his senior year of high school and the noise became louder once he announced his plans to not play for his EYBL team this summer.

That ended up not being the case as he focuses on his college future this summer instead.

At 6-foot-7 245 pounds, Stokes is a dynamic stretch forward for Notre Dame High School in California and is one of the most explosive players at the prep level.

He averaged 21 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals per game as a junior. 

Stokes led his team to the Southern Section Open Division Championship game but fell short despite a 21 point, 13 rebound effort.

"Tyran's playmaking ability, rebounding and flexibility on both ends allowed him to be a dominant force this season. His growth as a leader and focused competitor is where he really shined toward the end of the season."Stokes' HS coach Matt Sargent told ESPN

Arkansas has hosted two other rising high school seniors for official visits in Little Rock native JJ Andrews (No. 42 overall) and 5-star Compass Prep power forward Miikka Muurinen (No. 8 overall).

Although the Razorbacks do not currently have a commit for the 2026 class to this point, only four out of the top 100 players have announced their pledge.

The only top 20 prospect to do so is Georgia Tech power forward commit Moustapha Diop from nearby Overtime Elite.

Razorbacks coach John Calipari signed the No. 5 overall class for the 2025 cycle which includes a pair of McDonald's All-American guards Darius Acuff and Meleek Thomas.

Springdale 4-star small forward Isaiah Sealy and Lithuanian forward Karim Rtail round out the group of signees.

While he still signed three 5-star prospects in Boogie Fland, Karter Knox and Billy Richmond last year in a class which ranked No. 3 nationally, Calipari's roster truly looked different and that was certainly the plan when he took the Arkansas job.

“I’m still going to recruit young players because I like changing families,” Calipari said last April. “But, when you start talking more than nine [players], 10 11, 12, I’m coaching everybody. I don’t just coach the guys that are starting. I’m coaching them all."

"We’ll still recruit freshmen, but we just won’t have like last year [at UK], where we had seven freshmen. You can’t do that anymore.”

His novel approach to roster management was clearly different but presented quite the challenge to navigate especially if injuries occurred and they did.

While he did admit that his 9-man rotation would expand, he still doesn't regret the decision.

"For me, this was as rewarding a year and I feel like crap right now," Calipari said after the NCAA Tournament. "This was as rewarding a year as I've had in all my years [coaching]. For me as a coach, we had to adjust and learn, and it was an experience for me to learn."

Being a players coach in this enviorment has to be empowering for a coach like Calipari. This season didn't just challenge everything he's known but also forced him to be uncomfortable and adapt which should show potential recruits that it's okay to fail while alos learning.

"That was an interesting path for me and my staff," Calipari said. "My staff was outstanding. Never wavered. Never splintered, nothing. They stayed the course. They worked with the kids, they met them, watched tape with them, talked to them, built them up. But they were good kids."

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