Rob Dillingham
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
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| Born | January 4, 2005 Hickory, North Carolina, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 164 lb (74 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school |
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| College | Kentucky (2023–2024) | ||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 2022–present | ||||||||||||||
| Position | Point guard / shooting guard | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | Cold Hearts | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
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Medals
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Robert Deon Potasi Dillingham (born January 4, 2005) is an American basketball player. He played college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats. He was a five-star recruit who previously played non-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]
Early life and high school career[edit]
Dillingham was born and raised in Hickory, North Carolina.[2] His father Donald is African American and mother Lia 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.
Recruiting[edit]
Dillingham 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 91
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| Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals: 15 247Sports: 21 ESPN: 15 | ||||||
Sources:
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Professional career[edit]
On 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]
National team career[edit]
Dillingham 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.[14] He posted a team-record 31 points, six rebounds, four assists and three steals in a 90–75 win against Argentina in the final.[15]
Career statistics[edit]
| GP | 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[edit]
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 2024-04-24.
- ^ 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. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ "YNG Dreamerz Stay Perfect with Win Over Cold Hearts". Overtime Elite. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ "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.