Kansas Freshman Darryn Peterson Named Preseason All-American by CBS Sports

The preseason recognition continues to roll in for Kansas basketball’s star-studded freshman Darryn Peterson.

A week after being named to the Preseason All-Big 12 team and the Big 12 Preseason Freshman of the Year, Peterson has been chosen as a Preseason First-Team All-American by CBS Sports. He is one of five players to earn the distinction along with Purdue’s Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn, UCLA Donovan Dent, and Texas Tech’s JT Toppin.

Peterson is the only freshman to be named as a Preseason All-American this year and is one of just three true freshmen to be selected in the last five years – the others being Duke’s Cooper Flagg and Paolo Banchero.

The players are voted on by a coalition of college basketball reporters from CBS Sports, 247Sports, and analysts and on-air talent from CBS and CBS Sports Network. Here’s what the voters had to say about Peterson’s nomination:

“By all accounts this preseason he has met or exceeded even the loftiest of expectations in Lawrence, dazzling behind the scenes with his ability to command an offense as both a playmaker and scorer. KU coach Bill Self earlier this year stunned some by leaning into expectations and saying Peterson is the best player he's recruited at Kansas – where he has recruited the likes of Andrew Wiggins, Joel Embiid and others. We tend to believe Hall of Fame coaches when they make these types of declarations. He's going to be a star at Kansas and an All-American one-and-done season awaits him.”

It's high praise for Peterson to be the only freshman named to the First Team considering there are many other talented freshmen in college basketball this year, such as Duke’s Cameron Boozer and BYU’s AJ Dybantsa, who could have been selected.

Peterson and Dybantsa battled for the No. 1 spot in the 2025 high school class with Peterson eventually edging out Dybantsa after Peterson and his Prolific Prep squad outdueled Dybantsa and Utah Prep in several matchups during their senior year.

Should Peterson end up an All-American, he would be the first Kansas freshman since Andrew Wiggins to earn the honor. Wiggins was named Second Team All-American by the Associated Press in 2014. The only other KU freshman to be named an AP All-American is Ben McLemore, who earned Second Team honors in 2013.

If Peterson earns First Team honors, that will cement his place as one of the greatest Kansas basketball players of all time and secure his spot in the rafters of Allen Fieldhouse forever.