Spurs take Rob Dillingham No. 8 in NBA Draft, trade to T-Wolves

Kentucky freshman guard Rob Dillingham was taken by the San Antonio Spurs with the eighth pick of the 2024 NBA Draft on Wednesday night, giving the Wildcats two lottery picks.

Dillingham's rights were later traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves, where he could play with former UK standout Karl Anthony Towns.

Earlier in the night, Reed Sheppard, went No. 3 to the Houston Rockets. First-round picks, typically one-and-dones like Sheppard and Dillingham, defined the John Calipari era perhaps more than anything else.

Dillingham was a high-powered sparkplug off the bench for Kentucky this season. He was much more known for his offense than his defense.

With the ball, he was virtually unguardable at times. His ability to get to the rim and finish, distribute, and knock down both contested shots and deep shots were almost unmatched. With the ball in his hands he was one of the fastest and most exciting players in college basketball.

Dillingham was Kentucky's second-leading scorer during the 2023-24 season. He only started one of the 32 games he participated in but averaged 15.2 points, shooting 47.5% from the floor, 44.4% from three-point range, and 79.6% from the free throw line. Dillingham also averaged 2.9 rebounds and was second on the team in assists (124) behind only Reed Sheppard.

Dillingham scored a season-high 35 points (14-20 FG) in a 103-92 loss to Tennessee in early February and he was in double figures for most of the season. He scored 27 points and had seven assists in UK's SEC Tournament loss to Texas A&M in the quarterfinal round.

Dillingham was a five-star prospect who finished the 2023 recruiting cycle ranked the No. 15 player in his class. He was committed to NC State before reopening his recruitment and picking the Cats.