Will Kansas basketball’s Darryn Peterson be No. 1 pick in NBA draft?

LAWRENCE — Kansas basketball could see one of its players selected with the first pick of the 2026 NBA Draft later this month, when the event is held June 23-24.

>Darryn Peterson, a freshman for the Jayhawks this past season, has long been viewed as one of the top prospects in the NBA draft this year. The conversation surrounding whether he should be the No. 1 overall selection, or drop a spot or two, centers on a concern about his health and the issues that hindered him at times during his lone campaign with KU. Regardless, though, he won’t have to wait long to hear his name called.

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>Here’s a look at a few NBA mock draft projections, as of June 19:

CBS SportsPeterson is projected to be the No. 2 overall selection in the first round, by Utah. He would follow BYU freshman AJ Dybantsa, who would go No. 1 overall to Washington. Duke freshman Cameron Boozer would follow Peterson at No. 3 overall to Memphis.

The AthleticPeterson would again be selected as the No. 2 overall pick in the first round, by Utah. He would still follow Dybantsa going No. 1 overall to Washington, and go ahead of Boozer to Memphis at No. 3 overall. It seems clear these three will make up the first three picks, it’s just a matter of in what order they are selected.

Bleacher ReportPeterson would still be picked at No. 2 overall in the first round, by Utah. Once again, he would follow Dybantsa going to Washington at No. 1 overall and precede Boozer going No. 3 overall to Memphis. Across 24 appearances for KU, Peterson averaged 20.2 points and 4.2 rebounds per game on his way to being an All-Big 12 Conference second team selection and member of the Big 12’s all-freshman team.

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>Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He was the 2022 National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

>This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: NBA draft projections for Darryn Peterson, AJ Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer