When former Kentucky guard Rob Dillingham was drafted eighth overall to the San Antonio Spurs in the 2024 NBA Draft on Wednesday night, his fortunes quickly changed.
Instead of landing in San Antonio with former No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama, he was instead dealt to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for an unprotected 2031 first-round pick and a 2030 top-one protected pick swap.
Minnesota, which made the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2004 this past season and was three wins away from punching a ticket to the NBA Finals, made a deal in the draft, shifting picks around that allowed it to add Dillingham in what seems to be like a match made in heaven.
There are numerous reasons why Dillingham is a great fit for the Timberwolves, but one immediate one is that he will be under the guidance of 22 year-old Anthony Edwards, who shares a great amount of the same qualities as him.
Aside from the fact that they will be accompanying each other on the court and that they are both pure scorers with the ability to finish at the rim, the two have an incredible “aura” and a swagger to them that simply cannot be taught. From Edwards telling the Denver Nuggets workers that he’ll see them in game seven when the Timberwolves were down 3-2 and facing elimination in the 2024 Western Conference Semifinals to getting in the face of and trash talking basketball icon Kevin Durant in the first round of the playoffs against the Phoenix Suns, he has nothing but confidence and doesn’t let his young age define him.
In terms of Dillingham, who also doesn’t let his young age stop him from doing what he does best, he was trash talking opponents as an 18 year-old true freshman in his “one-and-done” season at Kentucky. In fact, even before college — when Dillingham was playing in the Overtime Elite League with some of the nation’s best recruits — he was never afraid to get in anyone’s face after finishing off a tough play.
Aside from complimenting Edwards’ on-court and off-court style, another reason Dillingham is a perfect fit for Minnesota is because of how quickly he can make an impact.
A lot of rookies need time to develop and learn the differences between overseas or college basketball and the NBA and, most of the time, there is already a player filling their position. Dillingham is currently listed behind 36 year-old veteran Mike Conley Jr. at the point guard spot on the Timberwolves depth chart, which means, depending on how well Dillingham settles into the NBA, it’s just a matter of time before he takes the reins at the point with his younger legs and stronger ability to score.
Don’t get me wrong, Conley has proven that, despite his age, he is still a major part of the Timberwolves, but Dillingham has the ability to better them at that spot. It may take one season or it may take more, but one thing already proven is that Dillingham has no problem serving as a spark off the bench.
At Kentucky, where he was statically and visually one of the team’s best players, he only started in one game and came off the bench in the other 31 contests. He — along with fellow true freshman Reed Sheppard, who was drafted third overall by the Houston Rockets — would come into the game within five minutes, no matter how good or bad Kentucky was playing, so if the Timberwolves don’t utilize him right away, he will have no problem waiting for his chance to pop off.
On the defensive side of things, Dillingham played mediocre defense at Kentucky, but it’s nothing he can’t upgrade.
A crucial part of a player’s development in professional sports comes with who’s mentoring them on and off the court and, when it’s not Edwards on the offensive end, it’s the whole Timberwolves team on the defensive end as the “TWolves” had the league’s best defensive rating last season, scoring a 108.4.
Individually, when one thinks of the Timberwolves defense, they may think of four-time Defensive Player of the Year and seven-footer Rudy Gobert, but he plays a style of defense that Dillingham physically can’t grasp as Gobert is more of a shot blocker with his tall height and long wingspan.
In terms of on-ball defense, Minnesota’s Jaden McDaniels and Nickeil Alexander-Walker were both heavily relied upon as McDaniels held a 111.5 defensive rating while Alexander-Walker held a 111.4 defensive rating.
McDaniels and Alexander-Walker, along with the rest of the Timberwolves defense, do an incredible job at smothering the ball one-on-one and, through the power of coaching and mentorship from fellow players, Dillingham will have a golden opportunity to transition into an elite defensive weapon just like the rest of them.
Many franchises who would’ve welcomed Dillingham with open arms will now have to watch from afar in agony as the qualities he holds not only bring more of an attractive level of play to any NBA team but even more so to the Twin Cities.
Aside from driving in ticket and merchandise sales with his easy to love personality and playing style, Dillingham will, perhaps more importantly, give the Timberwolves a greater shot at winning their first ever NBA championship, completing the journey the team started in recent years.
As is the case in any sport, often the team that drafts a player is just as important as the player being drafted. Not everyone is a good fit for every system and great players across the board fail because of bad systems.
In Dillingham’s case, Minnesota might just be the greatest thing that ever happened to him and, if so, Dillingham might be one of the greatest choices Minnesota could’ve made.
