Does KU basketball have a future U.S. Olympian? Preseason hype is building
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- ESPN projects KU freshman Darryn Peterson as No. 1 pick in 2026 NBA Draft.
- Analysts highlight Peterson’s scoring, defense and NBA-ready physical profile.
- Bill Simmons sees Peterson as a potential 2028 U.S. Olympic Basketball Team pick.
Various basketball analysts are raving about the potential of Kansas freshman guard Darryn Peterson as the start of his expected one-and-done college season approaches.
Peterson, a 6-foot-5 native of Canton, Ohio, is listed as ESPN’s projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. Analysts Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo in their latest 2026 mock draft have Peterson edging out BYU’s AJ Dybantsa, Duke’s Cameron Boozer and Tennessee’s Nate Ament for the top spot.
Meanwhile, ESPN’s Dick Vitale, who sees Peterson as “a future top-3 draft pick,” lists those four players plus Mikel Brown of Louisville and Darius Acuff of Arkansas as his six preseason “Diaper Dandies.”
National podcaster/sports writer Bill Simmons, not only sees Peterson as a top NBA pick, but a member of the 2028 U.S. Olympic Team.
“He is the No. 1 high school player this year,” Simmons said recently on the Zach Lowe Show, referring to Peterson, the 2025 Naismith Trophy Player of the Year out of Prolific Prep.
“And just from all accounts, he’s the Kobe (Bryant) prototype, a 6-5 (Devin) Booker, guard with size, does everything, plays both ends,” Simmons continued. “And I think he gets the (Anthony) Edwards spot in 2028 because if you had said in 2020 Anthony Edwards would be on the 2024 Olympic team, you would have been like, ‘What? That’s crazy. That seems really fast. Why would he?’”
Simmons noted the Olympic committee members typically have an up-and-coming player on the team, and “I think that’s going to be the guy. Because everyone is like, ‘This guy absolutely has it, is the best 2-guard we have produced at least since Edwards and maybe even better than Edwards.’ It just seems like the kind of guy they would put on, because four years from now, they want him to be one of the leaders on the team. So that’s my last pick (for the U.S. Olympic roster).”
Vitale in proclaiming Peterson a Diaper Dandy wrote: “Naismith HS player of the year, can score, rebound, pass, defend. Bill Self’s got himself a big-time winner in Peterson, who is a future top-3 draft pick.”
ESPN analyst Fran Fraschilla a week ago wrote on social media he would “be surprised if Peterson is not a first team AA” after watching the guard “hit eight straight 3s, some highly contested, in an intrasquad scrimmage. In addition to having an incredible feel and IQ for the game, that was ridiculous.”
