Rob Dillingham didn’t make the first impression expected from the five-star freshman at the GLOBL JAM summer tournament.
Dillingham came to Kentucky with a reputation as one of the most exciting perimeter scorers in high school basketball during his career but the usual fancy ball handling maneuvers and step-back jumpers suddenly weren’t falling like they did for him in high school.
The 6-foot, 3-inch guard was exposed in all four games by stronger and older competitors during a tournament that seemed to show most other Wildcats shine.
Dillingham averaged just 5.5 points on 31% shooting during those four games.
Instead of getting down on himself, Dillingham hit the gym and worked to elevate his game after seeing how different college is from high school. The work he put in was on full display at the Blue-White game on Saturday.
The guard exploded for a game-high 40 points to go with five rebounds, seven assists and four steals on an efficient 14-23 shooting total.
His strong play on both sides of the court powered the Blue team to a 100-89 win over the White team.
“Here’s what I liked, he was really efficient,” Kentucky Head Coach John Calipari said following the scrimmage. “He’s gained 22 pounds because he got beat up in Toronto. Was he making layups in Toronto? No, because he got bumped and now all of a sudden he’s the one creating the bump and playing through.”
While everyone was talking about the points he scored, Calipari was focused more on his other figures: seven assists and four steals.
“Rob made some great passes late when he could have tried to shoot it,” Calipari said. “When he did force it I told him, ‘Why would you try to do that? You’re getting every shot you want. So don’t do that to your team. That’s disrespectful to the other guys,’ but he wants to be so good. He’s in the gym all the time.”
Calipari also previewed what he hopes to see from Dillingham going forward.
“My thing with him is, I want him to play like Tyler (Ulis) played — off the ball and on the ball,” he said. “Did he look that way tonight? Yeah.”
Ulis, who now works as a student assistant for the Wildcat’s bench, was known for his pesky defense and, with his four steals, Dillingham showed that he could fit into Ulis’ role not only offensively, but defensively as well.
During the exhibition, the differences in Dillingham’s game were on full display as he demonstrated a willingness to attack the rim with force and he accepted the bumps that came his way.
Dillingham made nine of his 12 free throws Saturday night, while no other player on either team attempted more than seven free throws.
“When I was in Canada, I would get bumped and since I wasn’t comfortable, I would stop and throw the ball,” Dillingham said. ”But now it’s more like play, through the bump. That’s what (Calipari) tells me every day. Just continue to play through the bumping. Now I gained way more weight, it does feel way easier because I can play through the bump instead of getting knocked off my dribble and everything for sure.”
Dillingham has shown more confidence in every aspect of his game being amongst other talented five-star players and seasoned veterans. The freshman looks to fill his role, expressing the sentiment even if that role is coming off the bench.
“Before I got here, I tried to make a play every time I get the ball,” Dillingham said. “Now, I just realize, playing with so many guys every day, I don’t get to make a play every play. I can look for other people. I can throw the ball just to give it up sometimes. Really, just learning how to play with everybody and learning how to gel together.”
Dillingham will look to continue to grow and shine for the Wildcats as the regular season draws near. The Cats will kick off the 2023-24 season on Nov. 6 against New Mexico State inside Rupp Arena.
