Michigan center Hunter Dickinson sent a blast of energy through the program in announcing his return to U-M for one more season yesterday. He'll be joined by some outstanding talents on a much different-looking team, and he's excited to see what everyone brings to the table.

Dickinson got an up-close look at Jones at the NBA G-League Elite Camp a few weeks ago, losing to his team in the first of two games. Jones, who has yet to arrive on campus, put up 15 points to lead his team to an upset win alongside former U-M wing Chaundee Brown.

RELATED: ITF EXTRA — Dickinson, The Incoming Freshmen (wow!) and more ...

RELATED: Here's Why Hunter Dickinson Chose To Return To Michigan

"I was able to spend some time with him at the G-League combine, and then also he was in my workout with the [Sacramento] Kings," Dickinson noted. "We were on the same team for the three-on-three portion with the Kings. It was really good to be able to play with him and get some reps with him. Obviously, he's a really good player because of what he did at Coastal Carolina, also being able to be in the position to go to the G-League Combine, go to all the workouts. He's obviously a very talented player, very skilled.

"I was able to see it. He's a very skilled and talented guy. He's more than just a scorer ... I think that's what a lot of peopled don't know about him yet. I think he averaged 19 points at Coastal, but when I played for him he was very unselfish, looking for his teammates, making his teammates better. I think that's something Michigan fans will see next year."

Dickinson came back to Ann Arbor a bit earlier than expected so he could get a workout in with his teammates Wednesday, as well. Though Jones is still working on his paperwork to enroll and wasn't on campus, Dickinson did see the freshmen up close for the first time.

"We did a couple drills today, light stuff today ... they're pretty good," he said. "They're on their way. Obviously, there's a learning curve they've got to overcome. Me, Terrance [Williams], Zeb [Jackson] and Jace [Howard] had to overcome it last year, so they're on their way.

"Us returners are trying to help out as much as we can, and the coaching staff is trying to do the best to get them to get them coming along as fast as possible. But we have time. It's going to come eventually; they're going to get it eventually."

Those close to it have raved about forward Moussa Diabate's athleticism and shooting guard Kobe Bufkin's smooth, overall game in particular in the early going, but Dickinson isn't putting any added pressure on the group.

"We're taking our time with them, not in a rush," he said. "We have lots of talent, and more talent is coming in a couple weeks [in five-star wing Caleb Houstan]. For right now, we like where we are."

---

• Talk about this article inside The Fort

• Watch our videos and subscribe to our YouTube channel

• Listen and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes

• Learn more about our print and digital publication, The Wolverine

• Sign up for our daily newsletter and breaking news alerts

• Follow us on Twitter: @TheWolverineMag, @Balas_Wolverine, @EJHolland_TW, @AustinFox42, @JB_ Wolverine, Clayton Sayfie and @DrewCHallett

• Like us on Facebook