We're #1, Bill Self's Villain Era, Hunter Dickinson and oh yeah that other thing
Yesterday, a friend/friend of the newsletter/esteemed former colleague texted me the following:
At Big 12 media day, a reporter asked Hunter what he thought about the #1 preseason ranking, something that means effectively nothing but represents the informal start to a new season of college ball.
"I like it,” Hunter said. “I like people knowing it because I want them to know we're better than them.”
It was a comment that moved the needle enough to land on ESPN’s algorithmic homepage, which is HARD for college basketball. The Dickman is a talker. Everyone else is going to hate him. We must embrace this rare power—I hope the marching band has that “Imperial March” sheet music ready. Even Self is in on it. KU is in our villain era. I’ve heard it’s exhausting to root for the anti-hero, but you know……
I’m not sure we’ve had a player in the Self era that courts the haters in the manner of one Hunter Dickinson. He’s like Team Iceland in D2, but as one physical guy, modified and updated for 2023. Though some UM heads I know gave me a heads up about what might be coming, I wasn’t prepared for the directness of the Dickinson experience. He wasted no time to get straight into his bag.
In a period of the preseason where Self is typically in Public Challenge Mode, sending sly shots in the media at players he wants to see raise their level, everything he’s saying about Hunter is glowing.
Is this some kind of reverse psychology, the latest mindgame from the sport’s master of messaging? Surely, he is giddy that he has a back-to-the-basket player of this caliber in the modern game, a true retro unicorn. Where does the rhetoric go from here? It’s hard to say—maybe even Self is a little confused as to how to handle this. This is new territory.
I can’t wait to watch.
That other thing
The punishment came down. KU Woj? He had it the whole way. Hawks fans, we’ll take it.
I must say, the vacated wins… annoying! It’s annoying. I can live with it, though. It’s going to be hilarious to take back the all-time wins total—this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make history twice. What happens to the ‘18 Final Four banner? Can I have it?
The NCAA’s process is farce, and that we even have to respect their recommendation feels like a stretch. They had to punish us with something, and this is the best they could do within the scope of their waning power. We’ll be thinking about this for years—what it meant, who it really impacted, and how much money went into fancy toilets all around the country. Take a moment, be annoyed, deep breaths, meditation app if you have to… then move on.
To all the lawyers involved, be sure to get those invoices processed before the NCAA is insolvent.
Season soon.