Peterson picked No. 2 in NBA draft

If Kansas guard Darryn Peterson was disappointed about going No. 2 in this year’s NBA draft to Utah, he sure didn’t show it. 

Roughly 10 minutes after watching longtime rival and basketball friend AJ Dybantsa go to the Washington Wizards as the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft, Peterson heard his name announced by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver as the No. 2 pick to the Utah Jazz. 

He becomes the second-highest Jayhawk ever drafted — behind only former top picks Andrew Wiggins (2014) and Danny Manning (1988) — and he no longer has to wonder or listen to the debate about whether he should or will go No. 1 or if the issues that plagued him throughout his lone season at KU would ultimately hurt him. 

The verdict is in. After years of pushing and practicing, and months of projecting, he now is an NBA player and has a new home. 

When asked by ESPN’s Lisa Salters on the draft broadcast if he ever thought he’d be in this position when he started playing the game at a young age, Peterson shrugged and said, “Honestly, I didn’t, but my pops always knew. Once I got older, I started to believe it as well. And it all paid off.”

Speaking to reporters on a Zoom call about 20 minutes after Peterson was picked, Kansas coach Bill Self agreed and said he thought Peterson landed in a terrific spot. 

“I'm really happy for him,” Self said. “I think he's going to a perfect fit for him. I'm really excited for him."

Some of that excitement has to do with how he believes Peterson will be used in Utah. Self said he expects that he’ll play point guard or at least be in that play-making guard role, and that he has a good group around him, both on the roster and at the top of the whole thing with Utah GM Danny Ainge having produced all kinds of talent and played in the league for years with some legendary Boston Celtics teams. 

“I think he's a point guard that can really, really score,” Self said of Peterson. “Really score. You know, they have obviously Keyonte George, who they played some at the 1 and who's been very good out of Baylor, but I think he'll be able to slide in (and make an immediate impact). You've got two big guards that are both capable of being primary handlers, both capable of being primary scores.” 

The goal of most college players, any year, is to be drafted as high as possible. And the joy of being tapped as the No. 1 player selected certainly carries with it an added element of notoriety. 

“His goal all along was to go No. 1,” Self reiterated on Tuesday night. “So, whoever was picking 1, that was going to be a goal of his. That's always been a goal, and I'm sure it was AJ's as well.” 

Throughout most of his prep career, Peterson was expected to be in that position, but his injury-plagued and the uncertainty that surrounded his lone season with the Jayhawks allowed some doubt to creep in and had many people entering draft night with the belief that Dybantsa was for sure the safer pick if not the better pick. 

Even Self said he thought Dybantsa was probably the percentage play when asked if he expected Peterson to go 1 or 2. 

But just because he did not go No. 1 to Washington does not mean that people thought any less of his talent. Take ESPN analyst Jay Bilas’ words on Peterson shortly after the Jazz made their pick. 

“They’re getting the most talented player in this draft,” Bilas said. “He’s fluid, smooth, almost an artistic scorer. And he’s got the measurables, as well. When he was healthy, honestly, there was nobody better. He’s just a savant scoring the ball. A natural.”

He’s also destined for greatness. 

When asked where he thought Peterson would be in 10 years, Self did not hide his lofty expectations for the player he said was the best they had ever recruited to Kansas. 

“Well, his ceiling is, in 10 years, he's an 8-time All-Star,” Self said. “I mean, I think he could be a perennial All-Star. It may take him a year or two to get his legs under him, but I think he'll be one of the best guards in the league, he'll be one of the most talked about, he'll be one of the guys that averages 20-25 a game, I think, over the course of his career.” 

In anticipation of that, his brand is already making waves. Just minutes after he was selected, Nick DePaula, who covers the footwear industry tweeted news that Peterson had signed “a massive long-term deal with Adidas to headline the next generation of the brand.” 

DPaula wrote that the commitment from Adidas to DP makes the explosive scorer one of the five richest rookie shoe deals in NBA history.

According to a KU release, the selection of Peterson gives Kansas 90 all-time NBA Draft selections, including 32 in the Self era. 

Since the NBA adopted a two-round draft in 1989, Kansas has had 29 first-round selections and 47 total draft picks.

Round 2 is slated for Wednesday night, and former KU players Melvin Council Jr. and Tre White will be paying close attention to see if their names are called. 

“Tonight was a great night for Darryn, his family, and all KU supporters,” Self said in the release. “I obviously feel that he is the best prospect in the draft, and he'll have an opportunity to prove that in Utah. Darryn has as much upside as anybody we've had here at Kansas. The fans in Salt Lake City will be so excited watching him play on a nightly basis. Our hope now is that Tre and Melvin can have their name called. But even if not, I feel like they're in good position to pursue their career.”

Peterson is the 20th lottery selection in KU hoops history and the 14th lottery pick in the Bill Self era. 

The NBA lottery began in 1985 and includes the top 14 players chosen in the NBA Draft each year.

Peterson becomes the fifth Kansas player drafted by the Utah Jazz, and the first since center Udoka Azubuike was taken in the first round at No. 27 overall in 2020. 

Other Jayhawks selected by the franchise include current KU assistant coach Jacque Vaughn in 1997 (No. 27 overall), Greg Ostertag in 1995 (No. 28) and Kelly Knight in 1984. Peterson joins a Utah roster that also includes former Jayhawk Svi Mykhailiuk, who has played for the team the past two seasons.

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