Seth Greenberg questions Darryn Peterson NBA Draft stock: 'I'm not sure it's in his DNA'

On Sunday, Kansas suffered a season-ending 67-65 loss to St. John’s in the NCAA Tournament’s Round of 32. The loss is almost undoubtedly the final collegiate game for Jayhawks freshman Darryn Peterson, who is expected to be a top-three pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.

While Peterson is a highly-regarded prospect, he didn’t exactly boost his draft stock in his final collegiate showing. In the loss, Peterson recorded a team-high 21 points, but shot an inefficient 5-15 from the field and committed three turnovers. During an appearance on Get Up, ESPN’s Seth Greenberg discussed how Peterson’s performance Sunday may affect his draft stock.

“He’s an incredible talent, but he’s an ‘if,’ because you just haven’t seen enough,” Greenberg said. “Is he a three-level scorer? Yes. Can he shoot the 3? Yes. Does he have a perfect body to play the game? Yes. Having said that, on the biggest stage in the NCAA tournament, playing against St, John’s, I thought he would have a Darius Acuff-type of game, all right. I thought that he was going to seek it, be aggressive, attack, make plays, take over the game when the game was on the line, and that just didn’t happen.

“The guy’s a ridiculous talent, but as I watched him yesterday on that stage, I wanted to see more. I left wanting more. So, No. 1 overall pick, I don’t think so, because I’m not sure it’s in his DNA to be that guy that you can build your whole program and organization around. I think he’s talented, but if you’re overall No. 1, you’re the guy. You got to be the alpha. I didn’t see the alpha in him yesterday.”

Greenberg isn’t the first one to question Peterson’s viability as top-pick in this year’s draft. Peterson only played in 24 of Kansas’ 35 games this season. Moreover, he regularly checked out of games early and didn’t return due to cramps.

Peterson’s questionable reliability caused some fans to wonder aloud if he could handle an 82-game NBA regular season. Despite critiques around Peterson’s game, his talent when he’s on the court is undeniable.

Peterson averaged 20.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game this season, while shooting 43.8% from the field and 38.2% from beyond the arc. For his efforts, he was named an All-Big 12 Second-Team selection.

In many other years, Darryn Peterson would be the obvious No. 1 pick. Yet, with other standouts such as AJ Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer and Darius Acuff Jr. expected to be in this year’s draft as well, Peterson will have stiff competition for the top-pick title.