The Gonzaga Bulldogs pulled in two elite talents via the transfer portal in Massamba Diop and Isiah Harwell, but those aren’t the only newcomers joining this team in 2026-27.
A trio of talented incoming freshmen makes up one of Mark Few’s highest-rated recruiting classes of all-time, with this group poised to provide a foundation for the Zags in the new look Pac-12.
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Recently, ESPN released its final top 100 rankings of the 2026 class, a list that is made up of US high school players, therefore excluding 20-year-old German guard Jack Kayil, arguably the prize of Gonzaga’s incoming class.
ESPN’s ranking featured one of Gonzaga’s two high school recruits, Luca Foster, who came in at No. 55 with a grade of 87 overall.
Foster is a 6’5 wing from Pennsylvania who committed to the Zags after an official visit in mid-October. He chose Gonzaga over Michigan, Villanova, Oklahoma, and Oregon, among others, and is widely considered one of the best pure shooters and scorers in the 2026 class.
Foster proved his outside shooting is legit by drilling 39% of his three-point attempts during EYBL play last summer, and with a 6’9 wingspan, he has plenty of development potential on both sides of the ball.
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247Sports ranks Foster at No. 39 in the 2026 class, while Rivals has him at No. 51.
Where is Funches?
Gonzaga’s other incoming recruit, center Sam Funches, is not on ESPN’s top 100 list. He has a grade of 81 and ranks 19th among centers, while 247Sports has him No. 89 overall and 11th among centers, and Rivals has him No. 94 and No. 10 positionally.
Funches won Mr. Basketball in the state of Mississippi as a senior after leading Germantown to a second-place finish in the 7A state championship.
Standing 7’0 with a 7’5 wingspan, Funches is a developmental project who has the potential to become an elite two-way big man for coach Few and the Zags. He picked Gonzaga over in-state options Ole Miss and Mississippi State, and over three other schools he visited in Kansas, Vanderbilt, and Cal.
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The Kayil conundrum
Kayil is widely considered the most college-ready of Gonzaga’s trio, having played with Alba Berlin in Germany alongside former college stars like J’Wan Roberts (Houston), Moses Wood (Washington) and Mikey Rataj (Oregon State).
The 6’5 combo guard is going through the NBA draft process and received an invite to the combine, although most believe he will end up in Spokane alongside sophomores Mario Saint-Supery, Isiah Harwell, and Davis Fogle.
Former Gonzaga recruiting target Tyran Stokes is at No. 1, having recently committed to Kansas, while other previously known targets include Baba Oladotun (Maryland) at No. 8, Ikenna Alozie (Houston) at No. 39, Bo Ogden (Texas) at No. 43, Anthony Felesi (Oklahoma State) at No. 44, and Cameron Holmes (Arizona) at No. 52.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/gonzaga as Where Gonzaga’s incoming freshmen rank in ESPN’s updated 2026 class rankings.
