Entering the season, there were more than a few NBA analysts who were somewhat skeptical about whether the Timberwolves could repeat the success of the past two seasons. One of the main reasons for this was the point guard position. Mike Conley is 38 years old. Donte DiVincenzo was rumored to possibly be (and eventually become) their starting point guard, despite it not being his natural spot on the floor.
When Minnesota made the deal to acquire the eighth overall pick and select Rob Dillingham in the 2024 NBA Draft, it had to solve some of the issues the team would face at the position as Conley ages. After an uneven rookie season with inconsistent playing time, it was more of the same for Dillingham early in his second year.
Rob Dillingham has yet to pay dividends for Minnesota
On his most recent episode of his podcast, Zach Lowe discussed random questions with Kirk Goldsberry a week into the NBA season. The point guard position (specifically Dillingham) for the Timberwolves came up.
“To me, that’s a glaring issue: You got the No. 8 pick and basically got him last year, and this guy can’t even give you quality minutes in Year 2 at a position where you need him, Goldsberry said. That’s bad… this is a team that’s been knocking on the door of greatness here for a few years… Part of the reason you got Dillingham is because you knew you were going to have this (point guard) problem.”
In the Timberwolves’ narrow victory over the Trail Blazers on opening night, Dillingham never came off the bench. He finally got some action on the floor in the fourth quarter of their second outing against the Lakers. About a minute into his first game, an accidental elbow to the face from Deandre Ayton broke Dillingham’s nose.
That forced the 20-year-old to miss the next game against the Pacers. He returned (while donning a face brand) in Monday’s loss to the Nuggets. Although Bones Hyland played more minutes overall in the game, Dillingham played more in the first three quarters. He made his only two shots, dished out two assists, but also turned it over three times.
It wasn’t Hyland’s best performance either. Still, he has played a total of 58 minutes this season, compared to Dillingham’s 13. Hyland was barely used by Minnesota when he joined the team last season, and the expectation was that Dillingham would be ahead of him on the depth chart.
Dillingham has chances now that Anthony Edwards is out
Minnesota saw Anthony Edwards sidelined for the first time this season on Monday with a strained hamstring. The 24-year-old superstar is expected to miss at least a few more outings.
His absence (along with Jaylen Clark’s absence) allowed Chris Finch to add someone to his rotation, and that was Dillingham. Conley also returned to the starting lineup. So it looks like Dillingham will have a few more chances to get minutes before Edwards returns.
It’s critical that Dillingham does enough to show Finch that he should stay in the rotation. If not, he may remain behind Hyland on the depth chart, and the Timberwolves could look to upgrade their point guard via trade this year.
#Timberwolves #regret #trading #Rob #Dillingham #continues #grow