The New York Knicks added another promising project to their G-League affiliate in Westchester on Wednesday. After clearing waivers, former lottery pick Rob Dillingham signed into the NBA G-League — with Jake Fischer reporting that he's expected to join the Westchester Knicks.
After the guard's successful freshman season on the Kentucky Wildcats as John Calipari's 6th man, the Minnesota Timberwolves traded up in the 2024 NBA Draft to select Dillingham 8th overall. The San Antonio Spurs, who got a 2030 first-round pick swap and unprotected first-round pick in 2031, looked smarter each time head coach Chris Finch left Dillingham on the sidelines — which happened often.
The Timberwolves gave up on the guard midway through his second season in the league, including him as part of the package that landed Ayo Dosunmu at the trade deadline. Fans had been frustrated with the guard's lack of meaningful minutes. That all changed once Dillingham got a real chance to play on the Chicago Bulls, averaging 21.5 minutes over 30 games.
Under new management, though, Chicago moved on toward the end of the 2026 offseason. They traded Dillingham to the Charlotte Hornets, who quickly waived him after and set up his eventual move to the G-League.
Dillingham may be a small ball of clay, but he's an incredibly talented one
Dillingham made just 30% of his 3-point jumpers — and 42.8% of his field goals overall — on his way to averaging 9.6 points for the Bulls last year. The guard averaged 2.8 assists and 2.1 turnovers per game in that same stretch before needing right wrist surgery that ended his season.
In Dillingham, the coaches in Westchester are getting an incredibly talented 21-year-old with clear weaknesses. Listed at 6-foot-3 and 174 pounds, the guard will essentially always be at a size disadvantage with his matchup. He will likely never be much of a defender. Several of his weaknesses, though, can ultimately at least be mitigated by changes within the young guard's control.
Jalen Brunson just spent the last several years proving the NBA landscape wrong at large for their dismissive takes about his height. The reigning Finals MVP is the exception, though — not the rule. Dillingham has lots of work to do to come anywhere close to reaching Brunson's heights.
Knicks have been quietly using G-League to revamp young core
29 of 30 NBA teams are still below the second apron. The Denver Nuggets seem likely to maneuver their way beneath it by the time the trade deadline hits, too. With plenty of the Knicks' future draft capital in the hands of Sean Marks and the Brooklyn Nets, Leon Rose and his front office have been gladly selecting players from the "second drafts" of their NBA careers.
The team waived two-way player Kevin McCullar Jr., a member of their championship-winning roster, just after the start of the regular season to sign Dalton Knecht. The Los Angeles Lakers gave up on the 17th overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft; the Knicks were glad to take him in, at a much lower cost, on a hybrid contract.
Now, they've added the 8th overall pick from that same first round. Whether or not he sticks around remains to be seen, but Dillingham represents the exact kind of gamble the Knicks should be taking.
At this rate, fans interested in predicting the participants in New York's next training camp battle for a roster spot should keep their eyes on anyone else from the first round of 2024's class that might be looking for a new team in 2027.
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