Robert Deon Potasi Dillingham (born January 4, 2005) is an American professional basketball player for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats. He was a five-star recruit who previously played professionally for the Cold Hearts in Overtime Elite during what would have been his senior year in high school. Dillingham became a guard for Kentucky during the 2023–2024 season.[1]
![]() Dillingham with Kentucky in 2023 | |||||||||||||||
No. 4 – Minnesota Timberwolves | |||||||||||||||
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Position | Point guard / shooting guard | ||||||||||||||
League | NBA | ||||||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||||||
Born | Hickory, North Carolina, U.S. | January 4, 2005||||||||||||||
Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||||||
Listed weight | 175 lb (79 kg) | ||||||||||||||
Career information | |||||||||||||||
High school |
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College | Kentucky (2023–2024) | ||||||||||||||
NBA draft | 2024: 1st round, 8th overall pick | ||||||||||||||
Selected by the San Antonio Spurs | |||||||||||||||
Playing career | 2022–present | ||||||||||||||
Career history | |||||||||||||||
2022–2023 | Cold Hearts | ||||||||||||||
2024–present | Minnesota Timberwolves | ||||||||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
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Stats at NBA.com | |||||||||||||||
Medals
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Early life and high school career
editDillingham was born and raised in Hickory, North Carolina.[2] His father Donald is African American and mother Valaaulia “Lia” Tailele is originally from Samoa.[3] Rob played basketball for Combine Academy in Lincolnton, North Carolina.[4][5] Dillingham emerged as one of the top players in his class by his sophomore season.[6] As a sophomore, he averaged 21.2 points, 4.9 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game, leading his team to a 29–3 record and a non-association state title. He was named Charlotte Observer Player of the Year.[7] For his junior year, he transferred to Donda Academy, Kanye West's school in Simi Valley, California. For his senior year, he transferred to Overtime Elite in Atlanta, Georgia.
Recruiting
editDillingham was considered a five-star recruit by ESPN and Rivals, and a four-star recruit by 247Sports.[8] On December 1, 2021, he committed to playing college basketball for NC State over offers from Memphis, LSU, Kansas and Kentucky. He became the second highest-ranked recruit in program history, behind Dennis Smith Jr. On March 19, 2022, Dillingham announced his decommitment from NC State and reopened his recruitment.[9] On June 24, 2022, Dillingham committed to Kentucky over the offers of Louisville, Auburn, and USC. He became Kentucky's second commit in the 2023 recruiting class.[10] who went on to avarage 15.2 PTS per game at Kentucky.[1]
Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
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Rob Dillingham PG |
Hickory, NC | Donda Academy (CA) | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Jun 24, 2022 | |
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 91 | ||||||
Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals: 15 247Sports: 21 ESPN: 15 | ||||||
Sources:
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Professional career
editCold Hearts (2022–2023)
editOn November 3, 2022, Dillingham left Donda Academy after multiple controversies surrounding its founder, Kanye West, and signed with Overtime Elite, a professional basketball league for late high school and early college-level players.[11] He joined the Overtime Cold Hearts, one of the six teams in the league.[12] Dillingham made his OTE debut for the Cold Hearts on November 11, recording six points, three rebounds and three steals in a 92–84 loss to the YNG Dreamerz.[12][13]
NBA
editAfter spending one season with the University of Kentucky, Dillingham declared his entry into the 2024 NBA draft and received a green room invite.[14]
Minnesota Timberwolves (2024–present)
editOn June 26, 2024, Dillingham was selected with the eighth overall pick by the San Antonio Spurs in the 2024 NBA Draft, however, immediately on draft night, he was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for a 2030 protected first-round pick swap and an unprotected first round pick in 2031.[15][16] On July 8, he signed with the Timberwolves.[17]
National team career
editDillingham led the United States to a gold medal at the 2021 FIBA Under-16 Americas Championship in Mexico. He was named most valuable player after averaging 15.7 points, 6.2 assists and 3.2 steals per game.[18] He posted a team-record 31 points, six rebounds, four assists and three steals in a 90–75 win against Argentina in the final.[19]
Personal life
editDillingham is the son of Valaaulia Tailele and Donald Dillingham. He has two siblings, Pai Tailele and Denzel Dillingham.[20]
Career statistics
editGP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
College
editYear | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
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2023–24 | Kentucky | 32 | 1 | 23.3 | .475 | .444 | .796 | 2.9 | 3.9 | 1.0 | .1 | 15.2 |
References
edit- ^ Tucker, Kyle. "So Kentucky might really be back, huh?". The Athletic. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ Byerly, Justin. (November 30, 2021). Dillingham Set to Commit, Possible Wolfpack Lock. HoopSeen. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
- ^ Cyphers, Luke (December 16, 2022). "Kanye West Donda Debacle Divides a Kentucky Hoops Signee's Family". Sportico: The Business of Sports. Retrieved May 30, 2024.
- ^ Jordan, Jason (August 25, 2020). "Robert Dillingham's Star is on the Rise". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
- ^ Siner, Jeff (December 21, 2020). "Combine Academy's Robert Dillingham is more than a scorer". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
- ^ O'Brien, Patrick (August 26, 2020). "2023 Robert Dillingham is already becoming one of the hottest prospects in his class with college programs". Phenom Hoop Report. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
- ^ Wertz Jr., Langston (May 12, 2021). "All-Observer boys basketball: Combine's Robert Dillingham is player of the year". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
- ^ Fowler, Chapel (June 29, 2021). "Can an unofficial visit keep UNC basketball in the lead for five-star point guard Robert Dillingham?". The Fayetteville Observer. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
- ^ Jenkins, Brandon (March 19, 2022). "Five-star guard Robert Dillingham decommits from NC State". Retrieved March 28, 2022.
- ^ Holton, Brooks (June 25, 2022). "Robert Dillingham, top point guard recruit in 2023 class, commits to Kentucky basketball". USA TODAY. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
- ^ "Kentucky Recruit Robert Dillingham Leaving Donda Academy for Overtime Elite". Bleacher Report. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ a b "After becoming the first Overtime Elite player to sign with Kentucky, Rob Dillingham makes OTE debut". Zags Blog. November 13, 2022. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ "YNG Dreamerz Stay Perfect with Win Over Cold Hearts". Overtime Elite. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ Kirschenbaum, Alex (June 14, 2024). "Several More Players Invited To Green Room For 2024 Draft". HoopsRumors.com. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
- ^ "2024 NBA Draft: Every pick and reported trade". NBA.com. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
- ^ "San Antonio Spurs Draft Rob Dillingham No. 8 Overall at 2024 NBA Draft". SI.com. June 27, 2024. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
- ^ "Timberwolves Sign Rob Dillingham and Terrence Shannon Jr". NBA.com. July 8, 2024. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
- ^ "USA's Dillingham wins U16 MVP, headlines All-Star Five". FIBA. August 30, 2021. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
- ^ Divens, Jordan (August 29, 2021). "High school basketball: Robert Dillingham's 31-point outburst leads USA U16 National Team to seventh consecutive gold". MaxPreps. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
- ^ "Rob Dillingham". UK Athletics. July 6, 2023. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
External links
edit- Career statistics and player information from NBA.com and Basketball-Reference.com
- Kentucky Wildcats bio
- USA Basketball bio