LAWRENCE, Kan. (KCTV) - Kansas freshman Darryn Peterson’s health issues have left the Jayhawks’ coaching staff searching for answers as the potential top NBA draft pick continues to struggle with availability.
Peterson, a 6-foot-6, 205-pound freshman, had to leave Kansas’ Big 12 opener Saturday at UCF with cramps after scoring 26 points in just 23 minutes. The incident has added to existing concerns about the star player’s ability to stay on the court.
“Long story short, I don’t really know,” Kansas head coach Bill Self said when asked about Peterson’s issues on Monday.
The 19-year-old has been limited to just 5 of 14 games so far this season despite possessing an NBA-ready skillset. The freshman did not finish Saturday’s loss at UCF due to a leg injury.
“Don’t think for a second that he didn’t play down the stretch because of a minutes restriction,” Self said. “He didn’t play down the stretch because his legs didn’t allow him to do that.”
Kansas is trying to find a solution to Peterson’s health problems, but the answer has remained elusive.
“We don’t quite have the formula on how to do this, nor does anybody have the formula yet,” said Self. “Everybody can be a Monday morning quarterback, but I don’t think anybody has the answer specifically on how to handle it.”
On Saturday, Self said Peterson was playing on a minutes restriction, but other factors forced him to play Peterson longer than he wanted in the first half. Moving forward, the Jayhawks may limit Peterson’s playing time early in games.
“That minute restriction, there is no guarantee. There is not medical evidence saying only playing this much or playing that much or anything like that,” Self said. “The one thing I would say, playing less in the first half is something that we haven’t done.”
With Peterson’s potential to be the top pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, some basketball fans speculate Peterson may want to shut it down for the rest of the year to preserve his draft status. Self says the team has not had discussions about that.
“We hope it doesn’t get to that, obviously,” Self said when asked about the possibility of shutting Peterson down. “This is something that he’s going to have to deal with regardless of timing and all that stuff moving forward. Hopefully, we can help him get his arms around that and deal with it.”
Peterson is not listed on the initial Big 12 availability report shared Monday night ahead of Kansas’ Big 12 home opener Tuesday against TCU. He’s averaging 20.6 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game this year while shooting 51.4% (44.4 3P%) from the field.
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