Hunter Dickinson Shocking NBA Exit: Is He Leaving to Avoid Facing Public Backlash?….
Hunter Dickinson Shocking NBA Exit: Is He Leaving to Avoid Facing Public Backlash?….
Hunter Dickinson’s decision to enter the transfer portal in March shocked Michigan fans. He was the face of the program and one of the Big Ten’s best players in his three years with the Wolverines.
Dickinson announced in May that he was transferring to Kansas, choosing the 2022 national champion over Kentucky, Maryland and Villanova.
He’s averaging 19.5 points in two games this season, but the competition spikes dramatically for the No. 1 Jayhawks in their Champions Classic game Tuesday against No. 16 Kentucky (8:30 p.m. CT, ESPN).
Here’s a look at why he left Michigan, and why he picked Kansas:
Why did Hunter Dickinson leave Michigan?
In a May appearance on Barstool’s “Roundball” podcast, Dickinson said a major factor in his decision to leave was the revenue he could earn from his name, image and likeness.
“The people hating on me would leave their job right now for a $10,000 increase,” Dickinson said on the podcast. “I got, at Michigan, less than six figures.”
“I still do love Michigan,” he said. “I still love the school and everything. I love the program. That’s why it was so hard to leave because I really didn’t want to leave, I didn’t. But I just felt like, man, it was the best decision for me. It took a lot of courage. I don’t think people realize how much courage it took for a guy who was there for three years, an All-American for the team. I did have a legacy there and I basically gave that up to try to be selfish and do what’s best for me and my career, not what’s best for anybody else’s career.”
Part of Dickinson’s decision to leave also was because of Michigan’s poor season in 2022-23, when it missed the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2015 and went 18-16 overall, 11-9 in the Big Ten.
Why did Hunter Dickinson transfer to Kansas?
Dickinson told ESPN that his decision to transfer to Kansas was basketball-driven: Of the schools recruiting him, the Jayhawks had the strongest track record of winning championships, and of getting players to the NBA. He has one remaining year of college eligibility after 2023-24.
“If I wanted to just go to the highest bidder,” he told ESPN, “then it wouldn’t be Kansas.”
The Jayhawks won a title in 2022 and had two players taken in the 2023 NBA Draft, including first-rounder Gradey Dick. (Michigan had two first-round picks in Jett Howard and Kobe Bufkin.)
Kansas has won the Big 12 regular-season championship every year since in 2005 with the exceptions of 2018, 2019 and 2021.
“I was close to going to every one of the four schools,” Dickinson said on the “Roundball” podcast. “After every visit I was like, ‘Yeah, this is where I want to go’ … I was like, ‘Damn, I really could go to Kentucky,’ from a standpoint it would be a really big risk, but [coach John Calipari] has a really good record of getting guys to the NBA.
“Then I was like, ‘On the other hand, Maryland, it’s home, I could have a hometown legacy. (Dickinson attended DeMatha Catholic High School in Hyattsville.) That head coach who’s there, I really like [coach Kevin Willard], Jahmir [Young]’s there. I always wanted to go to Maryland.
“Villanova, I was like, ‘They have everything I want to do from a playing perspective.’ Justin [Moore] being there, I liked the coaching staff, it felt like a real family. Everybody from there was hitting me up.
“That’s why it took so long and was such a hard decision. I really felt like I could have gone anywhere.”
All-America center Hunter Dickinson announced Friday he plans to return to Kansas for his final year of eligibility, likely solidifying the Jayhawks as the preseason No. 1 team in men’s college basketball.
Dickinson, a 7-foot-2 senior, has been one of the most dominant and productive big men in the country during his college career. This past season, he averaged 17.9 points and a career-high 10.9 rebounds, which ranked eighth nationally — en route to earning second-team All-America and first-team All-Big 12 honors.
He produced huge single-game performances, going for 27 points and 21 rebounds against Kentucky; 17 points and 20 rebounds against Tennessee; and 30 points and 11 rebounds against TCU. Dickinson also finished with 19 points, 20 boards, five assists and four blocks in Kansas’ first-round NCAA tournament win over Samford. He had 17 double-doubles on the season.
Dickinson spent three seasons at Michigan before transferring last spring and joining Bill Self’s program in Lawrence. He was a second-team All-American as a freshman in 2021 and averaged 17.2 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.6 blocks and shot 57% from the field in 94 games with the Wolverines.
His return comes on the same day Kansas reeled in Alabama transfer Rylan Griffen, its fourth transfer addition of the offseason. Griffen joined Zeke Mayo (South Dakota State), Riley Kugel (Florida) and AJ Storr (Wisconsin) in the Jayhawks’ star-studded portal class.
Dickinson and the incoming transfers will team with returning starters Dajuan Harris Jr. and K.J. Adams in an experienced and balanced rotation. Self also brings in top-50 recruits Flory Bidunga and Rakease Passmore.
Kansas entered last season at No. 1 in the preseason AP poll, but the Jayhawks’ lack of depth and consistent shooting ultimately doomed their national championship hopes.
