Minnesota Sports Forum

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2024 8:02 pm

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2024 8:01 pm Here’s my final list of the guys I want to get in the draft:

1. Reed Sheppard - Gone to Houston
2. Devin Carter
3. Rob Dillingham - Gone to Spurs
4. Carlton Carrington
5. Jared McCain
6. Nikola Topic
7. Terrence Shannon
8. Tyler Kolek
9. Jaylon Tyson
10. Harrison Ingram
11. Baylor Scheierman
12. KJ Simpson

60WinTim wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2024 11:30 pm And Britt just tweeted these:

Connelly is usually very circumspect about draft picks, dialing back expectations.
The opposite tonight talking about Dillingham. Said flat out he is a point guard who will play immediately, will be challenged to play D, can play D, is a great playmaker, will up the pace.

Said he and Finch looked at film on him and were very impressed, that the analytics on him are very good, that you don't punt the asset they punted without making him a piece right away.
Cards are on the table. Refreshing, confident take.

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2024 8:02 pm

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2024 8:01 pm Here’s my final list of the guys I want to get in the draft:

1. Reed Sheppard - Gone to Houston
2. Devin Carter
3. Rob Dillingham - Gone to Spurs
4. Carlton Carrington
5. Jared McCain
6. Nikola Topic
7. Terrence Shannon
8. Tyler Kolek
9. Jaylon Tyson
10. Harrison Ingram
11. Baylor Scheierman
12. KJ Simpson

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2024 11:45 pm

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2024 8:02 pm

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2024 8:01 pm Here’s my final list of the guys I want to get in the draft:

1. Reed Sheppard - Gone to Houston
2. Devin Carter
3. Rob Dillingham - Gone to Spurs
4. Carlton Carrington
5. Jared McCain
6. Nikola Topic
7. Terrence Shannon
8. Tyler Kolek
9. Jaylon Tyson
10. Harrison Ingram
11. Baylor Scheierman
12. KJ Simpson

I’ve settled down now. I spent some time watching videos of Dillingham and I remembered why he ended up #3 on the list of prospects i wanted for the Wolves. He has all eight attributes you typically see in all-star caliber NBA guards: (1) elite handle; (2) elite straight-line speed; (3) tremendous change of speed and direction with the ball (a great change up and curve ball to go with his elite fastball); (4) terrific bounce off the floor (some terrific explosive dunks in his highlights); (5) fearlessness.confidence putting up tough shots or going to the hole; (6) the ability to make accurate passes on the move; (7) toughness which shows going to the hoop and finishing through contact; and (8) high level of competitiveness (has a great game face - seems strong willed and relentless).

Then you get to his stats. He averaged 15.2 pints, 4 assists, 3 rebounds and 1 steal in only 23 minutes per game. He hit 47.5% of his FG attempts and 44.4% of his 3-point attempts on a solid 4.5 attempts per game. Those are tremendous numbers for any college player, but ultra elite for a college freshman. It’s impossible to overstate how impressive his shooting stats are for a college freshman - a relatively young freshman at age 19.

His numbers and eye test both scream high lottery pick. The only reason he was mid to late lottery in mocks is his size. So what about his size? Let’s start with length. That’s a complete nonissue given his skills, speed and athleticism. He’s 2 inches taller than Mike Conley, who’s been an NBA all-star. He’s slightly taller than Trae Young with the same wingspan. He’s only one inch shorter than Steph Curry with roughly the same wingspan. He’s 1 inch shorter than Ja Morant and he’s slightly taller than Jeff Teague with a slightly longer wingspan. Most of these players are or were all-stars.

So what about his weight? He’s only 165 pounds. That concerns me a bit. But several things give me some comfort. First, he’s only 10 pounds lighter than Mike Conley, Steph Curry and Trae Young. Second, he’s very strong as you can see watching him finish through contract in his highlight videos. I watched a few of those highlights several times in a row just to see if my eyes were deceiving me but each viewing confirmed that this guys is really strong - lots of fast-twitch muscle fiber. Finally, he’s only 19 years old, which means it’s highly likely he’ll add considerable muscle bulk to his body over the next few years. I’ll note also that his 6’3 wingspan with a 7’11 overhead reach means he has pretty wide shoulders and therefore plenty of room to put on bulk. For example, Jalen Brunson is nearly 200 pounds with an overhead reach of 8’0 and wingspan of 6’4. I don’t want to overstate the translation of wingspan to room for bulk, but there is definitely something to it. With his quickness and strength Dillingham doesn’t have to bulk up to 200 pounds to be a good defender. If he can get up to just 180 with added muscle that doesn’t impeded his quickness, there’s no reason he can’t be a good defender if he puts in the effort.

Bottom line is that TC took a home run swing with this move to get Dillingham. The ball might not make it out of the park, but the vast majority of key signs suggest strongly that ball will carry well into the left field stands. Watching him play is like watching Ja Morant with an elite three-point shot. I see him eventually becoming a starting PG and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him in an all-star game some day.

Monster wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2024 11:55 pm

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2024 11:45 pm

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2024 8:02 pm

I’ve settled down now. I spent some time watching videos of Dillingham and I remembered why he ended up #3 on the list of prospects i wanted for the Wolves. He has all eight attributes you typically see in all-star caliber NBA guards: (1) elite handle; (2) elite straight-line speed; (3) tremendous change of speed and direction with the ball (a great change up and curve ball to go with his elite fastball); (4) terrific bounce off the floor (some terrific explosive dunks in his highlights); (5) fearlessness.confidence putting up tough shots or going to the hole; (6) the ability to make accurate passes on the move; (7) toughness which shows going to the hoop and finishing through contact; and (8) high level of competitiveness (has a great game face - seems strong willed and relentless).

Then you get to his stats. He averaged 15.2 pints, 4 assists, 3 rebounds and 1 steal in only 23 minutes per game. He hit 47.5% of his FG attempts and 44.4% of his 3-point attempts on a solid 4.5 attempts per game. Those are tremendous numbers for any college player, but ultra elite for a college freshman. It’s impossible to overstate how impressive his shooting stats are for a college freshman - a relatively young freshman at age 19.

His numbers and eye test both scream high lottery pick. The only reason he was mid to late lottery in mocks is his size. So what about his size? Let’s start with length. That’s a complete nonissue given his skills, speed and athleticism. He’s 2 inches taller than Mike Conley, who’s been an NBA all-star. He’s slightly taller than Trae Young with the same wingspan. He’s only one inch shorter than Steph Curry with roughly the same wingspan. He’s 1 inch shorter than Ja Morant and he’s slightly taller than Jeff Teague with a slightly longer wingspan. Most of these players are or were all-stars.

So what about his weight? He’s only 165 pounds. That concerns me a bit. But several things give me some comfort. First, he’s only 10 pounds lighter than Mike Conley, Steph Curry and Trae Young. Second, he’s very strong as you can see watching him finish through contract in his highlight videos. I watched a few of those highlights several times in a row just to see if my eyes were deceiving me but each viewing confirmed that this guys is really strong - lots of fast-twitch muscle fiber. Finally, he’s only 19 years old, which means it’s highly likely he’ll add considerable muscle bulk to his body over the next few years. I’ll note also that his 6’3 wingspan with a 7’11 overhead reach means he has pretty wide shoulders and therefore plenty of room to put on bulk. For example, Jalen Brunson is nearly 200 pounds with an overhead reach of 8’0 and wingspan of 6’4. I don’t want to overstate the translation of wingspan to room for bulk, but there is definitely something to it. With his quickness and strength Dillingham doesn’t have to bulk up to 200 pounds to be a good defender. If he can get up to just 180 with added muscle that doesn’t impeded his quickness, there’s no reason he can’t be a good defender if he puts in the effort.

Bottom line is that TC took a home run swing with this move to get Dillingham. The ball might not make it out of the park, but the vast majority of key signs suggest strongly that ball will carry well into the left field stands. Watching him play is like watching Ja Morant with an elite three-point shot. I see him eventually becoming a starting PG and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him in an all-star game some day.

One of the criticisms of the Gobert trade was that Connelly wouldn't be able to have a chance to address the PG position. That was a fair concern. Here we are on draft night 2024 less than 2 years after that deal and he traded a future pick and a pick swap to get into the top 10 and take a guy they are clearly very high on to be the future backcourt partner for Edwards.