University of Kansas guard Darryn Peterson's health has been a major topic in college basketball this season. Peterson revealed that he had suffered a severe full-body cramp.
“I had like a full-body [cramp], super serious,” Peterson told the Kansas City Star's Shereyas Laddha. ”You could say it was traumatic. I would say it was a traumatic experience.”
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Peterson said he first experienced the cramp during KU’s annual boot camp, typically held in early September. The 19-year-old had to go to the hospital at one point and receive IV fluids.
“The previous week we had boot camp where we were just running, no basketball,” Peterson explained. “The previous week caught up to me and my body just locked up on me, I guess.”
Peterson has missed 11 games during his freshman season and has been limited in minutes or pulled out of others due to multiple injuries. He also said at times that he could not fight through the mental challenge he was experiencing.
“It was traumatic for me. So much, I tried to fight until it … I kind of couldn’t,” he said. “Your mind is a joystick, my dad tells me. You can’t beat your mind.”
When he has played, Peterson has performed well, averaging 19.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.5 steals and shooting 38.4% from the 3-point line.
Despite BYU's AJ Dybantsa now being the betting favorite to be the No. 1 pick, Peterson has performed well against him. In January, Peterson scored 18 points in Kansas' 90-82 win over BYU, despite being out for most of the second half. He also outscored Dybantsa in their only high school matchup and in the McDonald's All-American game.
Peterson has played in seven straight games and is projected to be one of the top picks in a loaded 2026 NBA Draft if he declares.
Kansas is 23-10 after losing to Houston in the Big 12 semifinals.