Robert Dillingham turned down UK once but not twice. (Twitter Photo)
About 24 hours after a NBA draft that left Kentucky fans with mixed emotions — anger toward Shaedon Sharpe for many still after he was the seventh overall pick and disappointment that TyTy Washington dropped all the way to 29th — the Cats got some needed good vibes Friday night.
Five-star point guard Robert Dillingham gave his verbal commitment to coach John Calipari during a social media announcement via ESPN. He had picked North Carolina State over UK in December but changed his mind in March and this time picked UK over Auburn, Louisville and USC.
“If you put in the work at Kentucky and coach Cal thinks you are good enough to make it, then it will happen for you,” Dillingham told ESPN. “When I visited Kentucky, it was incredible. They explained everything. The basketball, academics, strength and conditioning, NIL.”
He told ESPN’s Paul Biancardi and Jeff Borzello that Calipari explained NIL — name, image and likeness — and how it would work. He told Dillingham NIL was “not the reason you come here, but it’s definitely a perk.”
Dillingham said he knew both TyTy Washington and Oscar Tshiebwe, the unanimous national player of the year last season, “have done very well” with NIL deals.
The 6-1 Dillingham is a North Carolina native who transferred to Kayne West’s Donda Academy in California for his junior season. He is averaging 19.5 points and 3.3 assists per game for CP3 All-Stars in the Nike EYBL this summer and shooting 40 percent from 3 and 65 percent overall.
How good is Dillingham? He is ranked No. 5 overall by ESPN and the second rated point guard in the class behind No. 1 D.J. Wagner, who is a priority recruit for both Kentucky and Louisville. He is the dynamic lead guard Kentucky has not had in recent years and recruiting analysts love his court instincts/awareness. He’s a terrific facilitator for teammates in transition or in a half-court set and has big-time range on his shot — something Kentucky has not had recently at point guard and won’t again this season with Sahvir Wheeler.
What about defensively?
Dillingham weighs about 165 pounds and I know some recruiting analysts worry about him getting bullied by bigger, stronger college players. Others believe his court awareness and anticipation will make him a very good off-ball defender.
Bottom line, Dillingham is a big-time player and a needed boost for Kentucky basketball for a lot of reasons and a great way to send a message about 2023 recruiting for UK.
