The DP redemption tour officially got under way Tuesday in Brooklyn

Kansas fans, and others who follow and cover college basketball, for months have been begging for Darryn Peterson to show some teeth. 

And Tuesday night, in the aftermath of being selected No. 2 overall in the NBA draft behind rival and longtime foe AJ Dybantsa, Peterson was happy to do so. With a smile, of course. 

Slowly but surely, as the interview parade rolled on and Peterson continued to be asked about the fit in Utah and going No. 2 instead of No. 1, the talented guard and one-year Jayhawk started to show that he’ll be out for blood in the NBA. 

Not just Dybantsa’s. And not just when he plays the Washington Wizards, who passed on him. 

Every night against everybody, whether you can see it or not. And whether it’s to your liking or not. 

That’s just the way Peterson is wired. He’s more low-profile than flash and splash. He’s humble and kind. And he’s comfortable in his own skin. More important than that, he’s comfortable in his own mind. 

Long before he arrived at KU and endured a difficult and up-and-down season, he drew comparisons to NBA legend Kobe Bryant. While his inability to overcome injury and reach the level at Kansas that he flashed as a high schooler inspired people to knock those comps, the one way I think they stuck was in the mind. 

How many times did we see Kobe barely break a sweat or look completely devoid of emotion even in the biggest moments of massive games or his career? 

It wasn’t that he didn’t care or wasn’t giving it all he had. Rather, he was dissecting, thinking the game and trying to win the mental war as much as the battle on the scoreboard. 

Peterson does that, too. And he enjoys it. 

To him, that part of competition is as much fun as hitting a step-back jumper in someone’s eye or throwing down a vicious dunk after a steal. 

And Utah Jazz fans are going to absolutely love it. 

Tuesday night, when DP was talking about what he would bring to the Jazz, he spoke about wanting to play all 82 games, wanting to make the playoffs and wanting to win a ring. 

He mentioned that he has seen a handful of rookies make deep playoff runs in recent years — hello Denver Nuggets guard Christian Braun — and that it has both shown him that winning like that right away is possible and inspired him to chase that at all costs. 

While sharing all of those thoughts at the post-pick podium after being selected, he looked up, pointed up to the television in the back of the room and told reporters there that he saw an image of “a guy who went No. 1 on the screen up there right now, so I’m extra motivated.” 

That “guy,” of course, was Dybantsa, a player who Peterson has gotten the best of in just about every head-to-head situation imaginable throughout their careers, be it in high school, AAU or when Kansas played BYU. 

If you think he’s going to stop worrying about competing with him now just because the two are in different conferences and have reached the mountaintop by becoming NBA players, consider yourself crazy. 

If anything, DP is likely to want to get after AJ more than ever before now.

Him and everybody else.

Later in the night, he told Salt Lake City-based sports radio station 97.5 KSL that, “I’ll have a chip on my shoulder my whole career; I’ll take it out not just on that guy but on everybody.”

The following words from KU coach Bill Self, who met with reporters via Zoom on Tuesday night after Peterson was picked, also indicated that dropping even just one spot may serve as some serious fuel throughout Peterson's pro career.

“Well, I think it's kind of ridiculous to think you're slighted if you go 2 instead of 1 in an NBA draft as a freshman,” Self began. “But I do know him well enough to know that he'll use anything that he possibly can as motivation in the future. So the Dybantsa-Peterson matchups, although they're only going to play twice a year, those games will be circled for sure both times.” 

It won’t just be those two games, though. 

It’ll be every night, against any opponent, and certainly when he’s facing someone from the 2026 draft class. 

See, in many real ways, Peterson was robbed of the chance to cement his legacy during his one year at Kansas. Sure, it would’ve just been a college legacy. And, yeah, it wouldn’t have mattered quite as much to folks outside of Lawrence and KU circles. 

But it mattered to him. And, say what you will about why it happened or who was to blame, but the mere fact that Peterson was unable to play the entire 2025-26 KU season and fully be himself when he did play kept him from putting the exclamation point on the talk with which he entered college. 

Best player in his class. Best player in the country. Generational talent. Best player Self had ever recruited to Kansas. 

All of those were thought to be givens and then the season happened and, all of a sudden, they weren’t. 

Forget KU’s 24-11 record and 2nd-round NCAA Tournament loss. Never did that show more loudly than Tuesday night.

And never did Peterson show more clearly that he’s ready to do something about it. 

Utah’s the big winner in that one. But when it’s all said and done, I think Peterson and even Kansas fans will be, as well. 

— For tickets to all KU athletic events, visit kuathletics.com