It is safe to say the season has not quite gone to plan for Darryn Peterson. The former five-star guard has been hindered thanks to cramping issues, hamstring tightness, a sprained ankle, and “flu-like symptoms,” in what has only seen No. 22 play in 13 games this season.
Peterson’s injuries have been a ‘string of bad luck’
For most other players, having an injury-ridden season like Peterson, while disappointing, would fall a little more under the radar, as most other players are not projected to be the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft like Peterson is.
Of course, with his stock so high, many on social media have gone on to state that Peterson and his team are purposefully missing out on games and are controlling when or if he plays, rather than being fully committed to Lawrence.
“It's really not remotely true," quoted head coach Bill Self, as Self sat down with the media Thursday afternoon to preview Kansas’ upcoming rematch against the No. 5 Iowa State Cyclones.
”The thing about it is, when you're honest, people don't believe you. Then you don't comment on it, people create their own narratives. And you know what? I do the same thing about things I don't know about. ‘Well, it must be this, it has to be that if they're not gonna talk about it,’
When Peterson is on the court, the freshman has easily been one of the nation’s best players as the guard averages 20.5 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.7 assists, all while hitting at a 48.9% clip on just 27.8 minutes per game
“But here's the bottom line,” quotes Self. "Was his hamstring legit? Hell, yes. Would you risk injuring it more in November? No. Was this cramping legit? Yes, positively, it was. Did he turn his ankle bad to the point where he couldn't practice for nine days? And then practiced one day and played BYU? Yes. And that was adrenaline kicking in in the BYU game. And then, of all things, he gets sick.
Peterson’s most recent absence came when the Jayhawks took down the No. 1 undefeated Arizona Wildcats in an 82-78 win, where Peterson briefly warmed up, but when the official warmups with about 40 minutes before tip got underway, Peterson was nowhere to be seen before being ruled out as sick.
“And this is what blows my mind. Well, he didn't play because he's sick, isn’t a big deal. But he didn't play because he was sick, when he didn't play the other games, added together becomes a big deal in people's minds. He's got a string of bad luck.”
A tricky road ahead for the Jayhawks
Fortunately, Kansas was able to pick up a landmark win over the Wildcats in what was the first win over an AP No. 1 at Allen Fieldhouse for Self, which was led by a combined 46 points from forward Flory Bidunga and guard Melvin Council Jr. Yet up next is the aforementioned rematch over the Cyclones.
When Iowa State and KU first met in mid-January, Kansas kick-started an eight-game winning run by smoking Iowa State in an 84-63 blowout win.
When asked about the health of Peterson ahead of the matchup, Self relayed, “He is really sick. is he better today? Yeah, he was out there yesterday. Was he full speed? No. Was he full speed today? No. I'm hoping he can be closer to full speed tomorrow, and hopefully, he can be full speed on Saturday. But that's what he's dealing with.”
Tipoff against the Cyclones is set for 12 p.m. CT this Saturday, with streaming available on ABC.
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