Bill Self’s Minute-Long Darryn Peterson Rant May Be Familiar to Kansas Fans

Head coach Bill Self has tried to keep the Darryn Peterson injury situation under wraps for as long as possible, but the Hall of Famer delivered perhaps his most in-depth response yet about the narratives surrounding his star freshman on Thursday. He spoke for several minutes about Peterson's recent absences and alluded to many of the rumors circulating on social media.

"I'm not a social media guy, but I have gotten on X and read some of the things and narratives that are out there about him," Self said. "And it's really not remotely true. The thing about it is, when you're honest, people don't believe you. And when you tell and don't comment on it, people create their own narratives."

"But here's the bottom line," he continued. "Was his hamstring legit? Hell yes. Would you risk injuring it more in November? No. Was his cramping legit? Yes, positively it was. Did he turn his ankle bad to the point where he couldn’t practice for nine days and then practice one day and play BYU? Yes, and that was adrenaline kicking in."

It is starting to feel eerily similar to the Remy Martin situation during the 2021-22 season, when Self gave one of his most memorable postgame press conferences. Today's rant was the equivalent of the one he delivered a little over four years ago:

"Remy practiced yesterday and looked great, but he's got a bone bruise guys. And everybody's got an opinion on crap," Self said in a famous January 2022 interview. "But I actually know more about what's going on than all the opinions out there in this particular situation. Maybe not on politics or world events. But on this particular situation, I actually know a hell of a f****** lot more than, excuse my language, than some other people out there."

Martin, who was dealing with a knee injury and was in and out of the lineup all season just like Peterson, had just as many rumors surrounding his name. He would go on to be one of the heroes in the 2022 NCAA Tournament and helped guide the Jayhawks to a national championship.

Self addressing rumors on X certainly was not on anyone's bingo card this season, but if the speculation about Peterson's absences is false, he has a right to be frustrated.

National analysts like ESPN's Seth Greenberg, former Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl, and others have bashed Peterson for his most recent absence against Arizona. He was a late scratch due to flu-like symptoms despite present for the pregame shootaround.

Peterson has now missed 11 of KU's 23 games, many of which were attributed to a lingering leg cramping issue that has hampered him the entire campaign. However, he was ruled out on Monday due to illness, which is why Self called it a "string of bad luck" and suggested the criticism was amplified because of his prior, unrelated absences.

There is just over a month left in the season, and the hope is that Peterson can fix his availability before postseason play begins. One thing for certain is that Self is fed up with the rumors, and Peterson will have a chance to quiet them himself this Saturday if he plays against Iowa State.

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