So, the Darryn Peterson will never play another game in a Kansas uniform conspiracy theorists fell short of seeing their hot takes come true, and we’re now on to another round of the fun.
Spoiler alert: None of it’s going to end any time soon.
And that’s OK.
It’s not good OK. It’s not oh-well OK. It’s just OK.
Because, if we’ve learned anything from the non-conference portion of KU’s 2025-26 schedule, which has just two games remaining — 8 p.m. Tuesday night vs. Towson and next Monday vs. Davidson — it’s that Darryn Peterson is the key to how good KU can be this season.
But until he’s out there, feeling good and flying around like we’ve heard he can, the questions are going to continue, the conspiracies are going to fly and the doubts are going to remain. About what’s going on. About this team’s potential. About all of it.
Darryn’s this. Darryn’s that. Darryn’s people are yada yada. Darryn’s team is yada yada.
On and on it goes. Every day. With no end.
Ultimately, I think everyone’s in the same boat of just wanting to see the dude play. And while we’re getting that in doses, it definitely doesn’t feel like we’ve seen DP Full Throttle yet.
We may never.
And while it will suck if that’s how this goes down, it’s also life and sports and the way things sometimes go.
The truth of the matter is this: I don’t think anyone truly knows how this is going to play out from here. Not Kansas coach Bill Self. Not Peterson. Not his team. Not anyone on any podcast or message board. No one.
So, be critical of the information you’re getting — or not getting — if that helps you deal. And keep believing that this isn’t as simple as a guy who’s injured struggling to get healthy and fight through it if that makes your anger feel justified.
Regardless of how you manage the next couple of months, get used to doing it. Because it’s hard to see this magically clearing up one day. Maybe it will. Maybe Peterson will wake up some morning and feel great and never look back.
That would be the ultimate prize, because, not only would it put an end to all the ridiculous hot takes and the endless chatter about Peterson or KU’s shortcomings, but it also would mean that DP is on the floor doing his thing and giving KU that extra gear to turn this season into one to remember.
You know how Self always says you can’t have a great season unless you do well in March — it can be a good season, but not great unless you finish it off in style — this is kind of the same thing.
These Jayhawks — 8-3 to date, with losses to No. 3 Duke, No. 5 UConn and No. 12 North Carolina — can be good without Peterson. And they’ve shown that to be the case, winning some big games without him and taking some of the nation’s best teams to the wire while he watched in street clothes.
But they’re probably not going to be great. Melvin Council Jr. dropping in nine 3-pointers and 36 points just isn’t going to be the norm for this team.
Peterson doing that, however, is a possibility on any given night. As long as he’s playing and, more importantly, feeling good.
We haven’t seen that yet. Not even close. And we may never. He’s talented enough to be able to get 15-20 points on a low number of shots and in limited minutes. And while that can help Kansas on a per-game basis, it’s probably not going to be enough to get this team to its ceiling.
That’s why people are frustrated. That’s why the Peterson saga has been such a bummer.
But don’t lose sight of the fact that it sucks for him, too, whether you want to believe that or not.
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