Kinney's 50/40/90 Quest
Taylen Kinney, a freshman guard who will wear the Kansas Jayhawks jersey next fall, has set a lofty benchmark for his debut season: a 50/40/90 shooting split, a benchmark that denotes at least 50 percent field‑goal accuracy, 40 percent from three‑point range and 90 percent from the free‑throw line.
To reach those numbers he is refining his jump shot daily, studying shot selection and confronting a personal admission: leadership is his biggest weakness, a skill he is actively trying to sharpen.
The decision to commit to Kansas was cemented during a meeting with head coach Bill Self and his staff, a dialogue that convinced Kinney that the program offered the ideal environment to develop both his shooting and his ability to guide teammates.
From Elite League to Lawrence
Kinney’s path to the NCAA has been anything but straightforward. After a stint in the Overtime Elite circuit where his shooting fluctuated, he returned home taller — measuring roughly 6‑3 to 6‑4 — and more confident in his role.
His friend Tyran Stokes, also a newcomer to the roster, shares the ambition of leading Kansas to a national championship, a goal that feels especially urgent given the program’s recent pattern of exiting the tournament after the first weekend since its 2022 title.
A Shared Championship Dream
Together, Kinney and Stokes hope to rewrite that narrative, blending elite shooting with emerging leadership to push the Jayhawks beyond the opening round and into the final stages of the NCAA tournament.