Kansas center Hunter Dickinson registered his fourteenth double-double of the season, registering 20 points and 16 rebounds in the Jayhawks 67-57 win over the Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday.
Former USC Trojans quarterback Caleb Williams reposted a poster celebrating the $587,000 NIL-valued (per On3) Dickinson's performance on his Instagram stories.
Hunter Dickinson courts controversy
Ever since his days as part of the Michigan Wolverines, Hunter Dickinson has courted and even embraced controversy. He has had several instances where he has taken on the role of college basketball's villain.
In 2022, there was an end-game scuffle between Michigan Wolverines coach Juwan Howard and Wisconsin Badgers assistant coach Joe Krabbenhoft, resulting in a huge scuffle involving players and staff.
In 2023, before the teams met again, appearing in an episode of the Roundball Podcast, Dickinson did not hide his feelings regarding the Wisconsin Badgers.
“Wisconsin, I mean they’re just … they’re just … they’re scumbags," he said. "It is what it is. I’m sorry, they’re just scumbags."
When the Wolverines met the Bagders and lost 64-59, Dickinson was also roundly criticized for wearing a ski mask to the game a day after the Michigan State school shooting where four people lost their lives.
The Indiana Hoosiers fans always boo Hunter Dickinson and he has embraced that reaction. After transferring to the Kansas Jayhawks and winning 75-71 on the road against the Hoosiers in December last year, he explained his approach to always being booed.
“I could probably save a baby out here in Bloomington, and they’d still boo me the next game,” Dickinson said (h/t Sports Illustrated). “But, you know, that’s how it is. They’re not going to ever like me out here, and so it’s like why try to be like a nice guy on the court? Like, who cares if they’re going to boo you? As long as my Kansas Jayhawks back in Allen [Fieldhouse] like me, that’s all I need.
“Hopefully it’s a lot easier for guys when, you know, a lot of the boos are at me, so I hope that takes a little bit of pressure off of them,’’ Dickinson said. “But it’s a tough place to play, that’s why they’re really good at home. They’re really well-coached, and they’ve got a lot of talent on the team. But you know, we’re a damn good team, too."
As long as he continues with his prodigious end product, Kansas coach Bill Self will not care about Hunter Dickinson being the de facto villain of college basketball.
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