Former Michigan basketball standout Hunter Dickinson to take recruiting visit to Kentucky
The top men’s college basketball player in the NCAA transfer portal is coming to Lexington for a recruiting visit.
The Herald-Leader was told that former Michigan star center Hunter Dickinson will be taking a recruiting visit to the Kentucky program this weekend.
Dickinson is universally viewed as the top player available in the NCAA transfer portal.
The 7-foot-1, left-handed Dickinson played in 94 games across three seasons at Michigan, and was a reliable post presence with per-game averages of 17.2 points and 8.4 rebounds so far in his college career.
Last season, Dickinson averaged 18.5 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists for a Michigan team that underwhelmed and eventually lost in the second round of the NIT to Vanderbilt.
Dickinson’s list of accolades is lengthy, and includes Second Team All-America honors in 2021 and recognition on an All-Big Ten team for three straight seasons. Given this, it’s unsurprising that the addition of Dickinson would be viewed as a major boost for any team in the country entering the 2023-24 season.
Since Dickinson made the decision to enter the transfer portal, several big-name schools have been discussed as landing spots for the veteran big man, including Kentucky.
Dickinson took an unofficial visit to UK during his initial college recruitment, and in early April he had a Zoom meeting with members of the UK coaching staff.
Dickinson’s courting by the Wildcats comes as the Kentucky frontcourt remains in flux for next season.
Incoming freshman center Aaron Bradshaw is ranked as the No. 5 overall recruit in the class of 2023, according to the 247Sports Composite.
Kentucky has also retrained second-year center Ugonna Onyenso for next season after Onyenso had a brief stint in the transfer portal himself.
Forward Jacob Toppin has entered his name into the NBA Draft. Oscar Tshiebwe has also entered his name into the draft, while keeping his college eligibility.
Tshiebwe has one season of NCAA eligibility remaining, and has until 11:59 p.m. on May 31 to remove his name from the NBA Draft pool and return to college basketball.
The NBA Combine is scheduled for May 15-21 in Chicago, and Tshiebwe could receive an invitation to that event.
Tshiebwe averaged 16.5 points and 13.7 rebounds per game last season, marking the second straight year that he led the country in rebounds per game.
The Wildcats are yet to secure the commitment of any player from the transfer portal this offseason.
