For the first time in 20 years, Kansas fell out of the AP rankings in November. Their scratchy 3-2 start was in part due to their biggest talent being injured. Darryn Peterson has been nursing a hamstring issue since the preseason and has played only 2 games so far. “It’s week-to-week. That may be too long. It’s more of every three or four days, we will reevaluate and see,” Bill Self said. Peterson’s loss, however, had a silver lining, according to Rob Dauster. 

Self has started to steady things at the Players’ Era Tournament. Kansas picked up wins against Syracuse and Notre Dame. The highlight came against No.19 Tennessee as Kansas clawed back from a 12-point lead for an 81-76 win. The win has given Kansas fans renewed hope amid Peterson’s injury troubles. Dauster pointed out how playing without Peterson early in the season has actually strengthened their long-term prospects. 

“I think the silver lining here for Kansas is that you have an opportunity now to allow these other guys to develop that confidence and to develop a feel and to develop the belief in themselves to be able to play at this level because a lot of them haven’t been at this level before and then you bring back the star that can kind of be the cog in the middle of the system,” Dauster said on The Field Of 68: After Dark. 

Flory Bidunga started for 6 games as a freshman, averaging 5.9 points in 16.3 minutes. Tre White is arriving from the Big Ten to the Big 12. Melvin Council Jr. played at St. Bonaventure in the Atlantic 10 conference last year. Neither of them had a consistent record against the elite opponents, and they are adjusting to a different level and new roles.

In such a situation, it would have been easy to default to the projected No.1 draft pick. And in the two games Peterson played, that tendency showed. He took 25 shots in just 50 minutes despite nursing an injury. His talent is a cut above the rest of the roster. For example, AJ Dybantsa has Rob Wright and Richie Saunders, who share the offensive load. Now, Bidunga, Council Jr, and White would have some confidence after this run without Peterson. 

“The worry that I had was that it ended up just being too much Darryn Peterson for Kansas.” Dauster further said, “I think now you can kind of see what these other guys can do, and Self is learning how they can be effective, and then you can bring Peterson in, and he doesn’t have to go and have like 40 shots a night. You can kind of work him back in slowly because you got faith in these other guys.”

In games without Peterson, Bidunga has averaged 15.2 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. White has scored 16 each Peterson-less night and assisted 8. Council Jr has averaged 11.6 points and 5.1 assists. They have emerged in the past few games without their leader and best player. Credit also goes to Bill Self, who has prioritized defense over forcing an offense that does not land.

According to KenPom, Kansas is the 9th-best defense in the league with  94.4 points conceded per 100 possessions. “We’re not gonna win games because he (Darryn Peterson) comes back and scores a lot of points, we’ll win games if we defend and rebound and take care of the ball and do the right things,” Self said. However, after all that, Kansas only finished 3rd in the Players Era tournament, a result Self felt was a little unfair. The Kansas coach called for a format change. 

“The format to me is fine, but the format can be tweaked. You can still go by point differential, but you can’t penalize teams for going 2-0. Everybody should get a piece of it, even if only four play on the last day,” He said. Self was otherwise satisfied with the tournament, but this was a major sticking point. The leverage to point-difference discourages a defensive approach like Self had. The Kansas coach also admitted to being relieved after his team’s response over the past three games

Bill Self Reveals Reignited Enthusiasm Amid Darry Peterson’s Return

It felt like things were getting away from Kansas early. Their squad planning looked like it depended heavily on Peterson, and they looked unsure of an identity without him. Self has adapted and put a solid foundation for Peterson to walk back into. While these wins were good, Kansas’ ceiling still hinges on a healthy Darryn Peterson.

“Hopefully, we get a guy that, if he takes 15 shots, he (Darryn Peterson) can make seven or eight. Then he’s averaging 20.0, and next thing you know, your team looks totally different,” Self said after their Tennessee win. Peterson hasn’t yet shown his full strength. Through the two games, his 21.5 points per game have been just enough to understand that he is the real deal. He will probably hand Self a few games on his own after getting his motor running. The Kansas coach also revealed some anger with his team because of their early losses. 

“I like where we’re going, because, going into this week, I’ll be honest with you. I was worried, I was mad, I was frustrated. I didn’t like them, they didn’t like me, which is pretty much par for the course when things aren’t going smooth. I think we’re all feeling a bit better about each other right now,” He said. 

Wins make a huge difference to the team chemistry and atmosphere. That is why momentum plays such a role in basketball. When it’s not going well, there are blame games, introspection, overanalysis, and a negative vibe around the team. But it’s just about getting the party started. Kansas has successfully done that even without its poster boy. This team should get better from now on. Even if they face any hurdles, a look back at this stretch would give them confidence to bounce back.