While most athletes who commit to Kansas come for the incredible basketball history and the opportunity to play for legendary head coach Bill Self, in the 2025-26 season, there appears to be another contributing factor.
Loyola-Chicago transfer Jayden Dawson spoke to the media about his reasons for coming to Kansas on Tuesday afternoon, highlighting the popularity of one of his teammates as a significant factor in his decision.
It’s no secret that incoming five-star freshman Darryn Peterson, currently listed as the nation’s second-ranked player by most major recruiting services, has a real chance to be selected with the top pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. For Dawson, that means more eyes on the Kansas program as a whole, and more eyes on himself.
Now that may sound a little outside of the box at face value, but for many, the buzz in Lawrence is impossible to ignore.
“Also, DP,” Dawson said. “Obviously, my dream is to play in the NBA and be a professional basketball player. DP being the projected No. 1 pick, that’s just going to put eyes on me and things like that. It’ll bring in NBA scouts and GMs every day for practice and games, and that’s just gonna be exactly what I need for me to get where I’m trying to get to.”
Dawson heads to Lawrence after three seasons at Loyola-Chicago. In his junior season with the Ramblers, the Nebraska native posted 13.9 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.9 assists on 41% shooting from the field.
