Top-25 recruit Jalen Montonati hearing from 8 schools the most

Jalen Montonati, one of the top small forwards in the 2026 class, says he is currently hearing from eight schools the most (in no particular order): Kansas, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma, Alabama, Louisville, Illinois, Nebraska, and SMU.

The four-star prospect out of Owasso High (OK) is the No. 24 overall recruit in the nation, according to the On3 Industry Rankings. He’s also the No. 9 small forward and the No. 1 player in Oklahoma.

Programs like Indiana, Kansas, USC, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State have hosted him on visits. He will be at SMU this weekend to watch them take on Duke.

Montonati on programs involved

In a previous interview with On3’s Jamie Shaw, Jalen Montonati discussed several schools recruiting him.

KANSAS: “The culture there is unbelievable. Coach (Bill) Self is one of the greatest college coaches of all time, so to be able to hear him talk to his guys and coach his team from right behind the bench was a really cool experience. To see how they prepare as a team for the game and how they recover after games was cool to see.”

INDIANA: “The historical auro that Indiana has with Assembly Hall and the national championships they have. Also, the culture Coach (Mike) Woodson has brought. They stocked up in the portal this summer so I’m really excited to see what they do this season.”

OKLAHOMA STATE: “My visit was with Coach (Mike) Boynton, but I’ve been in consistent contact with the new staff and they re-offered and we are building a relationship. I’ve been going to Gallagher Arena since I was a little kid, you know since my dad played there. Being around everyone there, it’s like a big family. The historical success that Eddie Sutton had there and the impact he had at Oklahoma State for a long time is inspiring. I spoke with Coach (Steve) Lutz and Coach (Keiton) Page a couple of weeks ago on campus and they were at all of my NBPA Top 100 Camp games.

OKLAHOMA: “I got to see how Coach (Porter) Moser runs things. He runs a tight ship over there and it is cool to see how he gets his guys ready and how he pushes his guys. I was there for a practice and it is very intense. They get up and down a lot, bring high intensity, and don’t have a lot of breaks. So that was really cool to see.”

What he’s looking for in a school

In that same previous interview with On3’s Jamie Shaw, Montonati said he what he wants in a future college program.

“I’m looking for a good culture,” Montonati said. “I don’t want to go into a toxic environment. My end goal is to get to the NBA, but with my time in college, I want to compete for a National Championship. That is a big thing for me. I don’t want separating groups or cliques on a team, I’m looking to go into a family atmosphere and a place I can go in right away and impact winning.”