Penn State men's basketball was in the mix for five-star recruit Dylan Mingo, though it was a pipe dream at the time for head coach Mike Rhoades to seriously compete with North Carolina.
Penn State basketball already loses first young talent to the Transfer Portal
The Nittany Lions ultimately and unsurprisingly came up short in this battle for Mingo. He chose the Tar Heels despite his brother, Kayden Mingo, finishing up his first collegiate season in Happy Valley.
North Carolina fell in the first round of March Madness to No. 11 VCU. Following the devastating loss, the Tar Heels relieved Hubert Davis of his head coaching duties. Some shifts in recruitment will likely follow, and Dylan Mingo is one that might start looking at other options.
Dylan Mingo might be back on the table for Penn State basketball
The incoming freshman combo guard is a five-star recruit out of Glen Head, N.Y. and is ranked fifth overall nationally from the Class of 2026. He is the No. 2 combo guard and top student-athlete out of New York.
Director of scouting Adam Finkelstein of 247Sports wrote in Dylan Mingo's scouting report:
"Mingo is a big guard with length, versatility, natural feel for the game, and an ability to get wherever he wants with the ball in his hands. He has a tight handle, can break his defender down with combo-moves, navigate a crowded lane instinctively, make reads out of ball-screens, utilize both hands, and create for himself and others. He is also a terrific perimeter rebounder (7.6 per game), very disruptive defender (2 steals), and simultaneously capable of guarding multiple positions."
With Kayden Mingo still on the court for the Nittany Lions, at least for the time being though the Transfer Portal is still a route he can take, his younger brother may be inclined to give Penn State a second shot.
Things can pan in favor of Rhoades, a coach who athletic director Pat Kraft decided to maintain following a lackluster 2025-26 season. Developing young talent is a theme Rhoades went with for the season, and another fresh face with elite talent can help that out. It also doesn't hurt to have both Mingo brothers on the court in Penn State men's basketball's rebuild.