The Utah Jazz couldn’t get the job done in their season opener on Wednesday night. They lost to the Memphis Grizzlies, who had the benefit of 45 points from Ty Jerome, who was on fire all night. However, there were some positives to take away from Utah’s night. One of them was Darryn Peterson’s minutes, as he clearly had no problem playing a ton.
It wasn’t a perfect debut for Peterson. He didn’t put up the stats that most people would want to see from him on a nightly basis. But he earned plenty of minutes, playing 31:06 by the end of the night. The only Jazz player who earned more playing time was Lauri Markkanen, who played 36:21. Nobody else cracked the 30-minute mark.
Again, Peterson could have played a lot better. Utah will need him to play a lot better if they’re going to take a leap this season. But if nothing else, this game proved that Will Hardy will not be afraid to play the rookie.
Darryn Peterson's minutes vs. Grizzlies were a good sign
A lot of times, rookies don’t get a ton of playing time from the jump. It’s just the way of life in the NBA. Even the top picks in the draft often have to work their way up to heavier minutes.
Plus, there were some playing-time concerns with Peterson coming out of Kansas. Videos of him subbing himself out and not playing as much as he could have took over the pre-draft process.
So, when the Jazz took him with the No. 2 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, those question marks immediately popped up. Would Peterson be able to play heavy minutes at the NBA level?
Well, he proved that he can right away. And not only that, Peterson proved that the standard rookie rules don’t necessarily apply to him. He may only be 19 years old, but Hardy is going to keep him on the court.
It wasn’t a very close game, so that could definitely have been a part of it. Maybe if the Jazz were in it, Peterson would have been kept off the court a bit more than he was.
Keyonte George would have earned more minutes. Jaren Jackson Jr. would have played more. That would definitely have been a factor. But Markkanen played a ton. So, Peterson’s minutes are definitely notable.
The fact that, in his first-ever NBA game, Peterson played the second-most minutes on his team is a great sign. Hardy clearly trusts him, and that’s good news for his development.
Because the more minutes Peterson gets to play, especially early on in his career, the better his growth will be.
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