Kansas star Darryn Peterson was in imperious form as the No. 22 Jayhawks beat the TCU Horned Frogs 104-100 in overtime on Tuesday to improve to 11-4. Peterson tallied 32 points, six rebounds, and one assist in 32 minutes of action against the Horned Frogs.
Peterson’s season has been interrupted by constant injuries, missing seven games in November due to a hamstring injury, before making his return to action and missing two more games due to cramps.
Former NBA Star Ties NIL Concerns to Darryn Peterson’s Injury Situation
Peterson has had limited minutes in games due to cramping issues, and his withdrawal from the Jayhawks’ loss to the UCF Knights with 10 minutes to go on Saturday sparked intense discourse among fans and analysts about his fitness status and whether he needed to be shut down.
During Tuesday’s segment of the “Field of 68” podcast, former NBA star John Henson advised the Jayhawks to shut down Peterson, while breaking down the NIL concerns from such a move.
“Soft tissue injuries torpedoed my career,” Henson said. “I kept coming back, I kept getting hurt, and I wasn’t healthy. For him, I think he needs to get healthy. If he cannot play a full game. He’s kind of trying to work his way through it. I think he’s gotta sit because these things linger.”
“College has a different dynamic now. He’s getting paid millions of dollars. That’s pressure. No one likes walking into the locker room and being hurt all the time and making the most money in the team… I think Kansas needs to shut him down until he is overly healthy.”
After playing for the North Carolina Tar Heels for three seasons, Henson was picked No. 14 overall by the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2012 NBA Draft. He had an injury-riddled career in the NBA, playing for the Bucks, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Detroit Pistons before retiring in 2024.
During his weekly news conference before the Jayhawks played the Horned Frogs, Kansas coach Bill Self addressed the speculation about Kansas shutting down Peterson for the season.
“No, no,” Self. “He’s a good kid. No. Not at all. There’s people that have their own opinions on that, but no. There hasn’t been one thing talked about that. We hope it doesn’t get to that, obviously. But this is something he’ll have to deal with regardless of timing and all that stuff moving forward. Hopefully, we can help him get his arms around that and deal with it.”
Peterson, who has been tabbed to be a top-three pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, has averaged 20.6 points on 51.4% shooting from the floor and 44.4% shooting from beyond the arc, 4.2 rebounds, and 2.4 assists for the Jayhawks this season.