Kentucky Wildcats lose a key player to transfer but they locate replacement.

An NBA analogy is given to a freshman from Kentucky.

In Rupp Arena, Kentucky defeated Vanderbilt 93-77 to finish the Commodores’ season sweep.

The Commodores got numerous open looks that they converted in the first half, so although the Wildcats had another strong offensive performance, they were unable to muster much defensive pressure. Vandy’s shots dried up in the second half, but they continued to get some open looks.

Rob Dillingham, a rookie guard from Kentucky, put on a strong performance for the Wildcats, scoring 23 points on 9 of 15 shots in what was probably his last game played at Rupp Arena. In the season’s last home game for Kentucky, the rookie also tallied five assists. Dillingham has established himself as one of the top offensive players in college basketball, and Jerry Stackhouse, the head coach of Vanderbilt, likened him to NBA sensation Kyrie Irving.

The standout player for the Dallas Mavericks is a fantastic passer and scorer. Dillingham has excelled this season in finishing difficult buckets at the rim, a skill at which he is arguably the greatest in the NBA.

This is Stackhouse’s entire Dillingham quote. “Well, he is really cunning, in my opinion. I would characterize him with that adjective, I believe, because I saw him in high school. He played against my buddies from North Carolina at Combine Academy, so I guess that’s when I first got to know him. And when I first saw him in the ninth grade, I wasn’t sure if he was large enough, but as time went on, he kept getting bigger, and it only got better. That youngster has definitely improved, and he’s a formidable foil for anyone. He’s the one that can blow up and score 25 or 30 on any give nany given evening. He has that kind of skill, which is, I believe, why you’re seeing him projected on both his own and the draft boards.

You know, being able to play one-on-one, create off the dribble, and I believe that once he keeps improving as a defender, well, you can try to pick on him, but I believe that he needs to apply the same shift that he does on offense in order to become a good on-ball defender as well.

Dillingham averaged 16.9 points per game during his career, was nominated to two All-Star games, and played in over 900 NBA games. For this reason, hearing Stackhouse praise him in this way is quite valuable. Stackhouse seems to believe Dillingham will be a fantastic player at the next level, so if anyone can determine how good Dillingham can be in the NBA, it’s him.