Despite missing a good portion of the beginning of the season, Kansas men’s basketball star freshman Darryn Peterson is still being projected as the number one overall draft pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. The Field of 68 projected the guard to go number one overall despite him missing some time due to a hamstring issue. 

Peterson has played just two games for the Jayhawks this season, and he averaged  21.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and three assists in those two games. Although he has missed some time, Big 12 Conference Play lies ahead for Peterson to show NBA scouts he is worth the first pick. Kansas head coach Bill Self doesn’t expect him to be out much longer. 

“The combination of (the testing results) and his confidence level (in) letting him go, guys, he’s 90-95%,” Self said. “But he wasn’t 100. I said all along, we are not going to play him until he is. It was as much my decision as anything, but I also sensed he wasn’t quite there yet.”

The Field of 68 spoke with multiple NBA executives and conducted anonymous evaluations of the top prospects.