NCAA Basketball: Takeaways from Hunter Dickinson picking Kansas Jayhawks
By Joey Loose
On Thursday afternoon, former Michigan center Hunter Dickinson ended weeks of speculation and announcing that he was transferring to Kansas for his senior season. Dickinson was quite possibly the top player in the entire Transfer Portal and was directly connected to Maryland, Villanova, and a number of other schools. In the end, it’s the Jayhawks who will receive his services next season.
A native of Alexandria, Virginia, Dickinson played at the famous DeMatha Catholic High School in Maryland just a few miles from Washington DC. He was a Top 40 prospect in the class of 2020 and committed to Michigan that previous December, choosing Juwan Howard’s program over offers from Duke, Florida State, and Notre Dame, with many others interested in him as well.
He’s been the Wolverines’ starting center for much of the last three seasons, developing into an impactful frontcourt weapon right off the bat. He won Big Ten Rookie of the Year honors in 2021, averaging 14.1 points and 7.4 rebounds a game and helping lead Michigan to the Elite Eight. He was named a Second-Team All-American as a freshman and has earned All-Big Ten honors in each of his three collegiate seasons, averaging greater than 18 points a game these last two seasons, taking more of the spotlight for the Wolverines.
Dickinson’s recruitment in the Transfer Portal has been a hot topic in recent weeks and his decision of Kansas will have a ripple effect for a number of people and programs in the coming days, weeks, and even years. We’ll be taking a look at some of those potential effects today. Dickinson was the best frontcourt weapon on the Transfer Portal, but how will he fit in at Kansas and why did he select the Jayhawks? How does missing out on him affect programs like Michigan and Maryland? Let’s get right into the details.