Kansas basketball rebounded from a six-point loss to West Virginia on Saturday with a 74-69 win over Cincinnati on Monday. Star senior Hunter Dickinson was rather quiet in both games, scoring 19 and 10 respectively.
Before both contests, Dickinson talked about his future with Jeff Goldman on The Field of 68 YouTube channel. He has one more year of eligibility and didn’t rule out a return to Kansas next season.
“The extra year is there for a reason,” Dickinson said on Friday. “And so there’s definitely — the door is open for it.
“Obviously if we win it all, there’s not many more times when you get to leave on the highest of highs,” Dickinson said.
If the Jayhawks win the national championship, which they are more than capable of doing this season, Dickinson will likely head to the pros. Even if they miss out, the 23-year-old could still opt to go to the NBA.
Despite being a National Player of the Year candidate, Dickinson is not a projected first-round pick in many mock drafts. His defense is a question mark for most NBA teams and not worth using a first-round pick on. Dickinson believes he is ready for the NBA right now though and wouldn’t hesitate to declare for this summer's draft.
Dickinson's last dance?
If this is indeed Hunter Dickinson's last ride in college – and only ride with Kansas basketball – he'll want to give it his all and try to go out on top. He'll probably need to give a little more on the boards and the defensive end if he wants to achieve that.
Over the last five games, Dickinson is averaging 17.2 points and 7.1 rebounds per game on 57 percent shooting. Kansas was 3-2 in the spurt and although they were respectable numbers, Dickinson can and has done more for the Jayhawks this season.
He has 10 double-doubles and in 19 games is shooting at a 60 percent clip. Dickinson averages 18.8 points and 11.1 rebounds per game. The Jayhawks are 10-0 in games in which Dickinson records a double-double.
Dickinson was a two-time first-team Big Ten selection and a second-team All-American as a freshman with Michigan basketball. Now he's looking for the ultimate team success and win a national title with Kansas.
The Jayhawks have as good a chance as any team to win the national championship and those chances increase exponentially if Hunter Dickinson hits another level in his game. If he can get close to Zach Edey's level then Kansas basketball might be the favorite to win it all.
There is plenty of basketball left to be played and the next two months could be the final chapter of Hunter Dickinson's college career. How will his Kansas basketball tenure be remembered?
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