By SAM LANCE
MESA, AZ — The most physically imposing player in the class of 2026 may just be four-star center Ethan Taylor. The 7-footer out of Shawnee Mission Northwest and the Mokan Elite AAU program is a dominant low post presence, incredible rebounder and force defensively. He showed all of his skills at EYBL Session 1.
Through three games, Taylor posted averages of 11.0 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists. He had two double-doubles, which leads the entire EYBL. Taylor also ranks second in defensive rebounds per game (7.3), sixth in performance index rating (58) and eighth in assist/turnover ratio (4.0). And he says he still has room to grow.
“I’m still not where I want to be on either side of the ball,” Taylor told ZAGSBLOG. “I’m working more on my post up game, my shot, my physicality, my motor.”
With Mokan this summer, Taylor has his sights set on a Peach Jam title. Mokan finished 2-1 at the first EYBL session.
“I think we have a pretty good team,” Taylor said. “I’m looking forward to just getting better over the summer because you can always get better. I think we could be a really great defensive team, so just staying hard nose playing good defense, being physical, playing together.”
As for his recruitment, Taylor had Colorado, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma in to see him during the high school season. He’s visited all of those schools unofficially besides Colorado. He broke down those four programs to ZAGSBLOG:
Colorado: “I like the fact that they have a post coach [Danny Manning]. I like that he harps on how he’ll develop the post and stuff like that.”
Kansas: “I loved the atmosphere of the stadium. It was so loud. I like the history of developing players and the history with bigs. And it’s closer to home, so.” Taylor visited during the Houston and Texas Tech home games.
Missouri: “I like how much of a family — they make it a family-oriented atmosphere. I like how close everybody is, how they develop their bigs.” Assistant coach Kyle Smithpeters mainly in contact.
Oklahoma: “I like the coach. He’s younger, so it’s not as much of a disconnect in personalities. It’s more being able to talk to someone closer to your age.” Assistant coach Clayton Custer mainly in contact.
The four-star has picked up an offer from Indiana after his performance at EYBL Session 1.
Taylor doesn’t have any visits set at the moment, but he’d like to take some in June. When he starts taking visits, he wants to see family-oriented programs who have a tough coach and a knack for developing bigs.
“Things like that to help me get better and make me feel like I fit in there,” Taylor said.
The big man is ranked the No. 49 overall prospect in the 2026 class by 247Sports. He is unsure if he’ll be returning to Shawnee Mission Northwest for his senior season. Taylor said he is 7-foot-2.
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