Rob Dillingham was a name that, heading into the NBA Draft, was receiving mixed reviews. He had the skillset that translates to the NBA from an offensive perspective. But his size, strength and some other knocks had him slipping slighlty -- or thought to be.
Instead, Dillingham went 8th overall to the San Antonio Spurs, but quickly the rights to that pick were traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Dillingham, who was the SEC's Sixth Man of the Year in 2023 thanks to averages of 15.2 points, 3.9 assists and a three-point rate of 44.4 percent, is an extremely talented offensive player.
His expolsive ability and playmaking skills are a huge reason for his high ceiling in the NBA.
And despite going in the top 10, a future Hall of Fame player thinks that was even too low for Dillingham.
"Who won the draft in my opinion is the Minnesota Timberwolves," Draymond Green said on the Draymond Green Show. "And the reason the Timberwolves won the draft is because they drafted their point guard of the future in Rob Dillingham -- who I think is a very special player. Some of those teams at the top of the draft were afraid of because he got swag and he got game and they don't know if his game is going to fit into their systems."
Green, who references Steph Curry as someone who 'didn't fit a system', believes that 'system' narrative is overblown and a reason 'why coaches get fired'.
Instead, Green advises teams to draft players who have NBA skills, and figure out the rest later.
"When you can just get a really good player who can score the basketball," Green said. "Figure out how the system works for him and then all of the sudden the franchise is in a territory that it's never been in before."
This isn't the first time someone has discussed Dillingham's terrific offensive ability as it relates to the NBA and this draft class. ESPN analyst Fran Fraschilla said the former Kentucky guard is the 'most skilled' player in the draft class.
Despite starting just one game last year he scored in double-figures in 27 of his 32 games played. He even scored 20 points in eight games, including a 35-point performance all off the bench.
"There are going to be some teams that regret passing on Rob Dillingham," Green added.
Green, who has won four NBA Championships and is a four-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA player, has played with Steph Curry and Klay Thompson for his entire career. He knows what it's like to have franchise-changing talent offensively.
So, a vote of confidence from Green should be another welcomed sign for Dillingham who is largley in store for a good rookie season and career in the NBA.