Darryn Peterson wanted to be the first name called at Barclays Center. He wasn’t. The Washington Wizards took BYU’s AJ Dybantsa with the top pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, and the Utah Jazz grabbed Peterson at No. 2, one spot below where he expected to land.
That’s nothing. Peterson made sure everyone knew it, too, after the pick was announced.
Darryn Peterson Addresses the Slide and Doesn’t Sugarcoat It
What he said about the snub was the kind of thing that tends to follow a player. The Jazz got a franchise piece. They also got someone with a long memory.
Peterson didn’t dodge the question when reporters asked about falling to No. 2. His only pre-draft visit had been with Washington, a clear signal of where he expected to hear his name, and he never scheduled meetings with other franchises. The bet didn’t pay out.
“Obviously I wanted to be the No. 1 pick, but I went No. 2,” Peterson told reporters at the draft.
“So now I’m prepared to go to Utah and get to work. There’s always been a chip on my shoulder, so I wouldn’t say it added anything else. But now it will always be in my mind for my whole career.”
That’s about as direct as it gets. Peterson spent one season at Kansas, averaging 20.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.6 assists across 24 games. He left with All-Big 12 second-team honors and a spot on the Big 12’s All-Freshman Team.
ESPN analyst Jeremy Woo had ranked Peterson as his top prospect in the class and wasn’t shy about it after the pick.
“Peterson was arguably the best fit for Utah out of the top four prospects: the Jazz needed another shooter and more size in the backcourt, and in Peterson, they get both,” Woo noted.
“They will have to figure out how he balances alongside another scoring guard in Keyonte George, but Peterson, being a taller guard and frankly, an underrated defender, also helps. The way this worked out will age very well for Utah.”
The Jazz are getting a player who’s set the bar high from the jump. Peterson told reporters his goals are to play all 82 games, make the playoffs, and win a championship.
Utah went 22-60 last season and missed the postseason for the fourth straight year.
He wasn’t the only prospect making news that night.
Cameron Boozer, the Duke forward projected to go third to Memphis, appeared on ESPN’s red carpet broadcast, and Kendrick Perkins asked him whether he felt he deserved the No. 1 pick. Boozer didn’t blink.
“Of course I feel that way,” Boozer said. “Those two guys are amazing players, everyone knows that. But I mean, for me, not being in that conversation, I don’t understand it. Many years down the line, people are gonna look back and say I should’ve been [the No. 1 pick].”
At Duke, Boozer averaged 22.5 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 4.1 assists while shooting 55.6% from the field and 39.1% from 3. He led the Blue Devils to the Elite Eight before a last-second UConn shot ended their run.
His case isn’t hard to make. He just happened to share a class with two elite talents who’d been sitting at the top of the boards all year.
