Michigan's Dickinson dissociates from Hitler-Izzo comment

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Michigan center Hunter Dickinson said he was part of a decision to remove a published Barstool Sports podcast in which one of his co-hosts compared Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo to Adolf Hitler.

“We talked about it, and we came together and said that’s something we can’t say," Dickinson told The Associated Press after the Wolverines beat Penn State 79-69 Wednesday night. “We fully understand that. I don’t associate myself with that comment.

“I have a lot of respect for Tom Izzo.”

Michigan (9-5, 3-0 Big Ten) plays the Spartans (10-4, 2-1) on the road Saturday.

Dickinson is a regular on the podcast but said he couldn't recall if he was on it when the comment was made.

“A lot of the episodes kind of come together for me so I can’t remember explicitly if I was on there," he said. “But if I was, I don’t condone it."

Hitler and his accomplices systematically murdered 6 million Jews in Europe. Izzo is a Basketball Hall of Fame coach with one national championship and eight Final Four appearances.

“There won’t be any more Hitler comments going forward, especially about Tom Izzo," Dickinson said. “Especially with recent events with popular figures, that’s not who I am."

The rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, praised Hitler in an interview and has made a series of antisemitic comments. His remarks led his talent agency to drop him and companies like Adidas to cut ties with him. Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving was suspended for eight games after posting a link to an antisemitic film and Nike suspended its relationship with him.

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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25