For much of Dylan Mingo’s recruitment, Penn State fans were hopeful that the five-star point guard would head to Happy Valley to join his brother, Kayden, the highest-rated recruit in Nittany Lions basketball history. However, once Dylan committed to North Carolina over Penn State, UNC fans shifted to hoping that Kayden would head down south to team up with Dylan.
Well, that dream isn’t completely off the table, but it doesn’t sound likely after Kayden’s end-of-season comments. Penn State was eliminated from the Big Ten Tournament on Tuesday, falling to Northwestern 76-66 to complete a 12-20 campaign. Despite the disappointment, head coach Mike Rhoades is almost certain to be retained, and the elder Mingo sounded like a player determined to return for his sophomore season.
"Going into next season, I'm really looking forward to fix a lot of things that I could do better to help the team win and be back here and win more games. That's the most important thing, winning more games," Mingo told reporters postgame.
Kayden Mingo following Penn State's loss to Northwestern tonight:
— Will Horstman (@WillHorstman_) March 11, 2026
"Going into next season, I'm really looking forward to fix a lot of things that I could do better to help the team win and be back here and win more games. That's the most important thing, winning more games"
All indications point to Kayden Mingo staying at Penn State
Kayden Mingo was a four-star recruit in the 2025 high school class, and as a freshman, he averaged 13.7 points and 4.3 assists for the dreadful Nittany Lions while shooting 48 percent from the field and 24 percent from three.
He wasn’t a terribly efficient player offensively, but he was asked to be the lead playmaker for arguably the least talented team in the entire Big Ten. Even for a freshman of his caliber, that’s a tall order.
Dylan Mingo is the higher-rated recruit of the two brothers, though in a significantly less talented class. Kayden was the 37th overall player last year, while Dylan is the fifth-highest rated recruit in this cycle. At 6-foot-5, Dylan has three inches on his older brother and is a more physically imposing force. Still, the two played together at Long Island Lutheran and would be a comfortable backcourt pairing at the collegiate level.
Dylan’s comments came on the heels of a frustrating season and a disappointing loss in his first-ever conference tournament. Once he takes a step back and surveys his options, UNC could still entice him to depart Penn State, and with the amount of money the Tar Heels have committed to building their rosters, they could certainly outbid the Nittany Lions. That is, if Davis values Kayden over the other potential transfers on the market.
While it would be a fun story for Dylan and Kayden to team up in Chapel Hill, another guard won’t be at the top of UNC’s shopping list this offseason after Derek Dixon emerged to overtake Kyan Evans as the Tar Heels’ starting point guard in his freshman year.