Darryn Peterson is widely considered the top prospect for the 2026 NBA Draft, but his legs haven’t been cooperating with him lately, and that has become the single biggest obstacle for the No. 22 Kansas Jayhawks as they enter the meat of the Big 12 schedule. But his struggles aren’t going unnoticed.

On a recent episode of The Field of 68, former UNC player and NBA veteran John Henson, who knows firsthand how lingering soft-tissue injuries can change a career, weighed in with a cautionary message. The latter part of Henson’s professional career was heavily impacted by wrist and hamstring injuries.

“Soft tissue injuries torpedoed my career because I was on my contract year, and I kept trying to come back,” Henson said of his playing days. “I kept getting hurt, and I wasn’t healthy, and so for him, I think he just needs to get healthy… In college, it’s a different dynamic now. He’s getting paid millions of dollars, right? That’s pressure… No one likes walking in that locker room and being hurt all the time, making the most money on a team.”

From Henson’s perspective, pushing through such injuries only increases the risk of something worse happening at the wrong time.

In the UCF Knights game, Peterson was unstoppable early, pouring in 23 points in the first half, looking every bit like the best player on the floor. But in the second half, a familiar pattern returned. His legs began bothering him, and he spent extended stretches on the bench using a massage gun before being pulled with 11 minutes remaining.

It ultimately resulted in another loss for Bill Self‘s team, as they stalled offensively and fell 81-75. So, Henson believes, it’s better if Self sidelines Peterson until he is healthy.

“At the end of the day, that home stretch where you’ve got to make some noise in the tournament or potentially the Big 12 tournament or at the end of the season, you may need him,” Henson said of the projected NBA lottery pick’s fitness. “What’s going to happen is end of the season, they’re going to be limping into the final four or five games. He may injure himself again. He’s going to shut it down. He’s not going to play the Big 12 tournament.”

Peterson’s issues date back to November, when he strained his hamstring and missed seven games early in the 2025-26 NCAA season, including a marquee matchup against the UConn Huskies. While he returned briefly in mid-December, he only missed two more games with what were labeled as leg cramps.

So when fans saw the young star still struggling, these stop-and-start stretches fueled speculation about whether the Jayhawks should shut him down entirely to protect his long-term future. However, Self pushed back on those rumors this Monday, stating that the plan remains to manage Peterson’s workload and get him back to full health.

With the Jayhawks now entering a tough stretch in their conference, the tension is only growing. Whether the coach continues managing his minutes or is forced into a tougher decision, the Jayhawks’ margin for error narrows with every game Peterson can’t fully finish.

What Darryn Peterson’s availability means for Kansas

Darryn Peterson was cleared to play in the latest game against the TCU Horned Frogs, and he scored a game-high 32 points. But if his leg issues return, he’ll be forced to shut things down. The ripple effect on the Jayhawks’ season would be unavoidable.

When healthy, Peterson is the Jayhawks’ offensive engine, but the team struggles to create shots when he isn’t playing consistently. So far, he is averaging over 20 points per game and has already shown the instincts of an NBA-caliber athlete.

If he gets shut down, the result would be significant pressure on veterans Tre White and Melvin Council Jr., who’d become the first option offensively. Coach Self will lean heavily on their physical drives and free throws rather than on shot creation. Elmarko Jackson would be pushed into a larger role, a challenge for a player searching for consistency.

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With Peterson healthy, the Jayhawks look like a team capable of making noise deep into March. Without him, they still defend at a high level and play disciplined basketball, but scoring droughts become harder to survive, especially in a Big 12 that offers little relief night to night.

We have already seen that reality…

Kansas’ loss at UCF, a lower-ranked team, only came after Darryn Peterson left the court. In a league loaded with physical, high-tempo teams, even a short-term absence could mean multiple losses. The Jayhawks have already lost four games this season. And in their latest game against the Horned Frogs, the opponents led for the most part, even with Peterson on the court. Although the game went into OT, it was Peterson who carried his team’s offense.

So, if a game against an unranked team can be such a close contest, without him, the Jayhawks would crumble.

“I’ll wait and see how he feels,” the head coach told the media before the TCU game. “He felt really, really good the other day and played obviously pretty well the first half… He didn’t play down the stretch because his legs didn’t allow him to do that. So, I hope like heck that it’ll be better. But we don’t quite have the formula yet in how to do this, nor does anybody have the formula yet.”

If the Jayhawks limp into February and March without their star at full strength, the consequences won’t just affect seeding. It could define their season altogether.

Next up, they play at West Virginia on Saturday.