When looking at the injury outlook of the No. 17 Kansas Jayhawks, it is easy to say that they have struggled without five-star guard Darryn Peterson for the majority of the season. Up until Kansas’ latest dominant 90-61 win over the Davidson Wildcats, that notion would be true. As of writing, the Jayhawks rank 159th-best in the nation with just 75.8 points per game.
Often this season, Kansas has had to rotate its leading scorers, one of whom was earlier in the season. The play was often dominated by Flory Bidunga, who dominated the paint. Now, it is often led by Tre White, who has notched double-digits in his last four games, spreading the court with his elite 51.6% field goal rate.
As things are settling well with Peterson off the court, thanks to his injury-ridden season, when Peterson has seen the hardwood, his play is second-to-none.
Peterson’s lowest season tally this season is still a remarkable 17 points, while his overall average sits at 19.3. Peterson’s ability to make plays is on show with a strong 2.8 assists, and his rebounding numbers demonstrate tremendous effort with 3.8 rebounds as well.
Despite his lack of time on the court, according to CBS Sports’ Isaac Trotter, Peterson still ranks as the nation’s best Scorer/creator.
“Peterson keeps his spot atop the scorer/creator category, even amidst an injury-riddled start. I'm not sure he's been 100% healthy one time this year, and yet, he pirouettes around defenders like they are invisible. The Kansas freshman owns such a pure jumper.”
What can a fully healthy Peterson offer Kansas?
When Kansas dismantled Davidson before Christmas, it was by far the best offensive performance of the season. The Jayhawks were moving with fluency, and the off-ball movement created easy spaces to score throughout the night, as Kansas racked up 51 first-half points. The most since a monster 96-64 win over Oklahoma State last season (52).
Numerous times, Self has relayed how Peterson can not just be inserted back into the team when he’s healthy, and that you cannot expect things to easily click into gear. Instead, Self has insisted on the need for Peterson and his cohorts to gel together, something that does not happen after just two practices.
Kansas’ latest win exemplified a full-flowing offense that, with Peterson pieced back in, could suddenly grab a brand new dynamic as Kansas will have the inside threat of a near-15 point per game player in Flory Bidunga, combined with a reliable Tre White, a dicing Melvin Council Jr., and the potential top-pick Peterson.
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