State of Ohio’s ‘most talented’ prep hoops prospect since LeBron to visit Kansas

Darryn Peterson, a high school senior combo guard who has been called the top basketball recruit in the state of Ohio since LeBron James, will make an official recruiting visit to Kansas.

Peterson reported Monday on his Instagram page that he will visit KU this coming Sunday through Tuesday. The 6-foot-5, 195-pound native of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio is about to begin his second year at Huntington Prep in West Virginia.

Peterson — he is ranked No. 3 in the recruiting Class of 2025 by ESPN.com, Rivals.com and 247sports.com — has reported he also will begin an official visit to Ohio State a week from Thursday.

According to the Columbus Dispatch, Ohio State offered him a scholarship prior to his freshman year of high school and has hosted him on multiple unofficial visits.

“He is regarded by many national recruiting analysts as the most talented Ohioan to come out of high school since LeBron James,” wrote Adam Jardy of the Columbus Dispatch.

Peterson in January revealed a final eight of KU, Ohio State, Kentucky, Baylor, Indiana, North Carolina, Arkansas and Michigan. However in April he decided to reopen his recruitment. In the past he’d had Kansas State, Auburn, South Carolina, Oregon, Louisville, Michigan State, Texas, UCLA and others on his list.

“Peterson’s explosiveness and true three-level scoring ability pop off the page,” wrote Rob Cassidy of Rivals.com. “He’s taken massive strides as a defender as he possesses the athleticism and size to match up with nearly any opponent. He recently turned in one of the top performances at adidas Eurocamp and solidified himself as a top-tier prospect in the process.”

Peterson signed an NIL deal with adidas in November of 2023. KU and Indiana both have shoe contracts with adidas. He plays on the adidas AAU circuit for Phenom United, a team based out of Ohio.

“Peterson has a basketball player’s frame — long arms with broad shoulders. He is a smooth player with the ball in his hands. Comfortable handling in the half and the full court,” wrote Jamie Shaw of On3.com. “Peterson can get downhill and touch the paint where he is a crafty finisher at the rim. He also has the explosion to dunk in traffic.

“The jump shot needs to continue to develop as he is currently a streaky shooter from beyond the arc. Peterson creates offense for himself, already at a high rate. There is more growth and upside to go as he tracks as one of the nation’s top prospects in his class.”

Peterson attended Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy for two years before transferring to Huntington Prep. Peterson’s older brother is Wisconsin football linebacker Darryl Peterson III.

“Growing up Kentucky was Darryn’s dream school,” Peterson’s dad, Darryl, told Eric Bossi of 247Sports in late February. “Before the adidas NIL stuff he always loved the John Walls, the Devin Bookers, the Shai Gilgeous-Alexanders and all of those big guards.

“So he’s always liked them. He has watched what coach (John) Calipari has done in helping to put guys into the NBA and be potential one and dones and how they prepare there. He also really likes their style. He was also the first player they offered in a really competitive 2025 class. and that was really important to us.”

Calipari is now the first-year head coach at Arkansas. Former BYU coach Mark Pope is at UK.

Of KU, Peterson’s dad, who played college basketball at Akron, said: “We love coach (Bill) Self. He’s hands on and we love his structure. I went to one of his practices and he’s big time. I went to some practices where the big-time guys don’t say a word.

“I went to a Kansas practice and coach Self did all the coaching and that was impressive to me especially since he had come back from some health issues. It isn’t that other coaches don’t push (but) I’ve seen it first hand with coach Self and what he can do.”