Darryn Peterson, the projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft has missed 11 of Kansas’ 27 games this season due to hamstring, ankle and cramping issues. And the noise surrounding his availability has grown loud enough to reach him. He wants no part of the narrative that he is choosing to sit.
“Everybody’s got an opinion on it,” Peterson told ESPN. “But basketball is my life. If I could have been out there every game this year, I would have. If you would have asked me last year, what were my goals for this year, I would never mention missing games. So all this stuff kind of just happened, but I’ve got to deal with it.”
Peterson’s absences reached a flashpoint when he benched himself in the second half of a victory at Oklahoma State – his shortest outing of the season at 18 minutes – prompting national media criticism, including ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith discouraging NBA teams from selecting him first overall.
Coach Bill Self acknowledged the stakes plainly.
“It’s certainly a concern,” Self said. “You get into the NCAA tournament, you’re playing a team just as good as you and you need to have all your best players available.”
Despite the turbulence, Peterson dismissed suggestions that adversity rattles him. Raised in Canton, Ohio, he described a childhood of grueling workouts – running stadium steps and passing drills into garbage cans – engineered by his father.
“Let’s do it,” Peterson said when asked what he would tell Kansas fans worried about his NCAA tournament availability. “That’s the goal.”
Only Kenyon Martin and Kyrie Irving have been drafted No. 1 after missing more than 10 college games.