Hunter Dickinson has moved on from his stint with the Kansas Jayhawks, taking the next step in his career with a legitimate opportunity as a promising NBA player. However, his final season in Lawrence hasn’t faded from memory, especially after it ended in disappointment with a loss in the NCAA Tournament and earned him jabs from fans.
Hunter Dickinson Breaks Silence on Difficult Kansas Experience
Dickinson played college basketball from the 2020-21 season onward, initially joining Michigan for three seasons before transferring to Kansas to finish out his career. However, his final season at Kansas turned into an experience few players would want to go through.
Dickinson didn’t hide his frustration when reflecting on that year during the “Run Your Race” podcast.
“They expect greatness, but the team would just like, bro, like we didn’t even feel like we had support,” Dickinson said. “We had a ton of fans that were supporting us, but we also had like a ton of people who were just hating. Like, we would always make the joke after we win a game, you’d go on Instagram and see how many comments we had, and some of those would be like, ‘Oh, thank God, we won a game.'”
“What they do on a loss, we would have like 500 comments. So for me, it got to a point where I didn’t like playing. We would come to the gym, and it would feel like a job. The games got to a point where it’s like, well, I don’t even want to like play right now… It got to a point where dudes were just like, ‘I’m through with it…’ Some dudes were just like, ‘Get me out of here, bro.'”
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Dickinson recorded strong numbers over his collegiate career, averaging 17.4 points on 55.5% shooting from the field and 9.2 rebounds per game. He also earned Big 12 Newcomer of the Year honors (2024) and Big Ten Freshman of the Year (2021).
However, many fans felt Dickinson didn’t fully deliver on the lofty expectations placed on a leader at a blueblood program. The rise of NIL deals also complicated his situation. He had a reported NIL valuation in the millions during his time at Kansas, making him one of the highest-paid players on the roster.
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That status made him an easy target for frustrated fans who weren’t accustomed to losing.
The lingering frustration toward Dickinson became visible after his college career ended. At the 41st “Late Night in the Phog” in October 2025, when his image appeared on the Jumbotron during an alumni roll call as a member of the New Orleans Pelicans, he was booed by the student section.
This was a stark contrast to the warm reception given to former Jayhawks like Jalen Wilson and Gradey Dick during the same event.
