Not Starting at UK Hasn’t Impacted Draft Stock for Reed Sheppard, Rob Dillingham

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ESPN draft analysts Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo have the Houston Rockets picking Reed Sheppard with the No. 3 pick in next month’s NBA draft and then San Antonio taking Rob Dillingham at No. 4.

“Sheppard’s unselfishness, feel for the game and sharp defensive instincts could make him a strong fit alongside the Rockets’ core moving forward,” Givony wrote.

Woo wrote that Dillingham’s “shot-creation ability and offensive upside” makes him an “intriguing  upside bet” for the Spurs to go with rookie sensation Victory Wembanyama.

If that happens, it will have to be the first time in history a pair of college teammates who did not start both get drafted in the top five. Sheppard started only five games at Kentucky last season while Dillingham started one — and it drove many UK fans berserk that then coach John Calipari did not start them both most of the season.

However, not starting clearly did not hurt their draft status and probably did not impact UK as much as some thought. Sheppard still averaged 29 minutes per game — third most on the team behind Antonio Reeves and Tre Mitchell — while Dillingham averaged 23.3 minutes per game — fifth best on the team.

Calipari liked the firepower/explosiveness the duo provided off the bench and both seemed to adjust to their roles well. Many games one or both were in the game before the first TV timeout at the 16-minute mark.

And while Kentucky coach Mark Pope and his staff wait to see if BYU star Jaxson Robinson withdraws from the draft — he was not listed anywhere in some recent mock drafts — and follows Pope to UK, remember that Robinson only started six games at BYU last year but still played 26.4 minutes per game. He was the Big 12 Sixth Man of the Year.

While I am sure Sheppard and Dillingham would have been happy starting, they are going to be just fine with the roles they had and most of UK’s problems last season were more due to defense, rebounding or just not finishing games.

Even if the two former Cats do not go in the top five, they are going to be lottery picks it seems.

Kyle Boone of CBS Sports has Sheppard going seventh in his latest mock draft while he dropped Dillingham from fourth to 11th after he was measured at only 6-1, 164 pounds at the NBA Combine. His size combined with questions about his defense negated some of his offensive prowess for Boone and led to him dropping out of the top 10.

Yahoo Sports’ Krysten Peek has Dillingham eighth in her latest mock draft and Sheppard ninth. She notes that Dillingham didn’t have a “problem creating separation off the dribble playing in the SEC” and wrote that Sheppard is “reliable in the backcourt, a great defender and can knock it down from deep.”