Darryn Peterson’s night off Tuesday had nothing to do with the kind of injury concerns that followed him through his lone season at Kansas.
The Utah Jazz simply had no plans to push their No. 2 overall draft pick through three summer-league games in four days, so Peterson, along with Ace Bailey and Cody Williams, was held out of the team’s third and final game in Salt Lake City. The trio is expected back on the floor Thursday when the Jazz open Las Vegas summer league against No. 1 pick AJ Dybantsa’s Washington Wizards.
Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. Central Time on ESPN.
Even with Tuesday’s rest, Peterson was the clear headliner in Salt Lake City. He opened with 28 points in 27 minutes in a win over Atlanta on Saturday, then came back Monday with 25 points and 12 assists in 28 minutes as Utah beat No. 3 pick Cameron Boozer’s Memphis Grizzlies. Across the two games, Peterson piled up 53 points in 55 minutes.
Boozer put together a strong two-game run of his own, finishing with 33 points and 11 rebounds for Memphis. He scored 15 points with four rebounds in 24 minutes in a win over Oklahoma City on Saturday, then added 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists in Monday’s loss to Utah.
The buzz around Peterson has only grown since those performances. Deseret News veteran NBA reporter Sarah Todd wrote that while it may be too soon to hand out labels like “destined for greatness,” there’s a real reason so many people are buying into that possibility. She also pointed to Peterson’s quick decision-making, his comfort against pressure and the way he processes the floor at a speed that lets him cut down on his own foot speed.
Jazz assistant coach Steve Wojciechowski echoed that sentiment, saying Peterson’s mindset stood out as much as the production. After Peterson opened with eight turnovers and two assists, then followed that with 12 assists and two turnovers, Wojciechowski called it “a very mature question for a young player to ask, especially after his first game in front of Jazz fans, his first game in a Jazz uniform.”
“You don’t need me to talk about his play. His play speaks for itself.
He’s a really hungry learner. He wants to be great and I think he’s got what it takes,” added Wojciechowski, a former head coach at Marquette and assistant at Duke.
The praise hasn’t stopped there. Former NBA player Jeff Teague said on the Club 520 podcast: “I don’t think there’s been a guard better than him entering the NBA in the last decade for real.”
“He’s 6-6 coming out of college like that. Anthony Edwards was cold, but he wasn’t like him…. this kid is better,” Teague added.
CJ McCollum of the Atlanta Hawks told SI.com: “I think he could have played in the NBA last year. He’s going to have a special career and I hope that when it’s all said and done, it’s LeBron (James) coming out of Ohio and then you’re talking about him,” McCollum said of Canton, Ohio native Peterson.
Former NBA player Joe Johnson also weighed in on the Nightcap Show: ““For me, when I watched Darryn Peterson today, how he ran the pick and roll, how patient he was. He wasn’t sped up.
When he did speed up he got to whatever he wanted to. He didn’t seem uncomfortable to me out there.
I think he has so many tools in his toolbox. The sky’s the limit for this kid.”
Peterson, though, is keeping his focus on the next stop. He’ll head to Vegas for his third pro game on Thursday, with every NBA team guaranteed four games and some getting five in the July 9-19 event.
“What is greatness to me? I think it’s just kind of being one-of-one. There’s not a ton of people I would say, that achieve greatness,” Peterson told the Deseret News
“That’s definitely something I want to try to achieve. I’m far away from it now so early in my career in summer league, but it’s something I want to try to achieve by the end of my career.”
In Other News...
Darryn Peterson Just Reopened A Painful Bill Self Debate At Kansas
Darryn Petersons first NBA Summer League game with the Utah Jazz offered a fresh look at what Kansas fans thought they were getting when the former five-star arrived in Lawrence. Peterson said he is enjoying being on the ball as a point guard at the next level, a role that has let him handle more of the offense than he did at Kansas, where he spent much of his time working as a shooting guard and wing option.
That contrast has reopened an old discussion around Bill Selfs usage of Peterson and whether the Jayhawks ever found the best way to deploy him. Selfs side of it was always tied to roster needs and Petersons availability, with cramping issues and injuries limiting how often Kansas could build around him, but the NBA setting is putting the difference in roles back in the spotlight. [Read more 🡒]
Lance Leipold Just Addressed Kansas Fans' Biggest Wembley Fear
As Lance Leipold heads into his sixth season at Kansas, one of the biggest talking points around the Jayhawks is not a Big 12 opponent or a depth-chart battle, but a trip overseas. Kansas is set to meet Arizona State at Wembley Stadium as part of the Union Jack Classic, giving the program a rare international showcase before the season settles into its usual grind.
Leipold acknowledged the challenge of the travel, but he also pointed to a built-in cushion that should matter to Kansas fans worried about the aftermath. The game comes in Week 3, and the Jayhawks get a bye week afterward before turning to a demanding nine-game finish, so the staff has time to manage the transition back and reset for the Oct. 3 matchup. [Read more 🡒]
Lance Leipold Thinks Kansas Finally Has An Answer In Close Games
At Big 12 Media Days, Lance Leipold sounded encouraged by what Kansas has built heading into the season, pointing to a roster that looks sturdier across the board. The Jayhawks believe they have more reliable depth in the trenches and at several key spots on defense and in the backfield, and that matters for a program trying to turn more of its competitive Saturdays into wins.
Leipold also tied that stability to the changing college football landscape, saying the new revenue-sharing model has helped Kansas allocate resources more effectively. He added that the single transfer portal window has made it easier to keep the roster together, and for a team that has been searching for a better way to finish tight games, that kind of continuity could be as important as any single player on the depth chart. [Read more 🡒]