Michigan star center Hunter Dickinson, the top-rated transfer who entered the portal at the end of March after earning All-Big Ten honors in each of his three seasons with the Wolverines, committed to Kansas on Wednesday following a weeks-long courtship from some of the top programs in the country. Dickinson is a 7-foot-1 senior who started 89 game in 94 appearances the last three seasons at Michigan.
Where Dickinson would land has for weeks been at the center of the college basketball universe with some of the bluest of bluebloods involved in prioritizing him. Kentucky, Villanova, Maryland and Georgetown were among the many other programs who threw their hat in the ring.
The 2023 transfer class is one stacked with star power but Dickinson’s presence among the group stood head and shoulders above the rest of the bunch. CBS Sports’ David Cobb ranked him No. 1 among all transfers this cycle, projecting him as someone who “has the ability to change the trajectory of whatever program he chooses to play for” next season. From Cobb:
Dickinson is one of the best big men in college basketball. At 7-foot-1 and with a well-built frame, he can outmuscle most opponents on the block, protect the rim and rebound. He also continued demonstrating the ability to hit 3-pointers during the 2022-23 season while earning All-Big Ten honors for a third straight year. The Maryland native is a fiery competitor and proven veteran who has the ability to change the trajectory of whatever program he chooses to play for during the 2023-24 season.
Kansas landed Dickinson’s first official visit after he entered the transfer portal and seemingly made a big impression on him out of the gate.
“Kansas was really cool,” Dickinson said on his podcast leading up to his decision. “Just going there and to Kentucky, it’s just so different than being at Michigan. At Michigan, obviously, everything is focused around football. But walking by the facilities and stuff there, just how much basketball is so dominant there. And it was really just cool to see the facilities, the dorms. Then talking with coach Self for a while and meeting the staff and two of the players, it was really cool. And then going to [Allen Fieldhouse], the Fieldhouse was crazy. It just looks like it’s going to be loud as hell there.”
Because Dickinson is a graduate transfer and has not exercised his free one-time transfer eligibility, he will be eligible immediately next season for KU. The addition comes up clutch for Kansas as it looks to add size in the frontcourt after playing mostly small-ball lineups last season with 6-foot-8 forward Jalen Wilson and 6-foot-7 forward KJ Adams operating at times as the center in large stretches. Self has thrived by building its system around big men, and Dickinson should plug in as a Day 1 starter — and star — on a team that may be a top-five preseason team.
Dickinson initially signed with Michigan out of high school in 2020 from DeMatha Catholic in Maryland despite pursuits from the likes of Duke, Florida State, Louisville, North Carolina and others. In three seasons at Michigan, Dickinson averaged 17.2 points and 8.4 rebounds per game and averaged career-highs last season in minutes, rebounds and blocks per game while finishing 0.1 points per game shy of matching his career-best as a sophomore where he averaged 18.6 per game.
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