Former Auburn Center Taking in Every Moment He Can in NBA

The former Auburn Tigers center is slowly craving out a role for himself in Sacramento, and how important that is isn't lost on him

Dylan Cardwell is relishing the moment of being in the NBA | Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images

The Auburn Tigers had their share of player go pro after their run to the Final Four last season. One of them in particular isn't taking his moment of reaching the NBA for granted.

"No one thought I was an NBA player," Former Auburn center Dylan Cardwell said in a postgame interview. "I'm not supposed to be here, but God."

Cardwell went undrafted during last summer's draft. He initially signed a two-way contract with the Sacramento Kings and spent time in the G-League.

While he saw some action in the NBA early in the season, he started to see consistent time on the court with the big-league Kings until mid-December. Over time, he began to carve out a role for himself.

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A major highlight so far in his career came earlier this week. He picked up his first-career double-double in the 117-110 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. Cardwell racked up 12 points, a career-high, along with 10 total rebounds, eight of which were defensive.

Overall, he's averaging 4.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. While his points per game totals seem small, it's worth noting that his field goal percentage is 53%. He's doing well when he's set up to take a shot at the basket.

His free-throw shot could use some work since he's shooting 53.8% from the charity stripe. However, perhaps that can be worked on over time. He's already at a point that he at one point felt like could only be a hope and a prayer.

"To get that is like a dream come true, and I don't think I'll ever take that for granted because at the end of the day, like I said, I'm not supposed to be here," he said. "Putting this jersey on every single day, and I have a blast doing this, because it's something I've dreamed of since I was a kid."

Auburn got a small shoutout when Cardwell spoke of the love he has for his teammates and the experience of being in the locker room with a good group of guys.

"We may not be having a great season, but this is the best locker room I've really been a part of, outside of my last year at Auburn."

Cardwell spent all five years of his collegiate career on the Plains. He saw action regulary, but he didn't become a starter until his final year in school. In 38 games during his final season at Auburn, he averaged 5.0 points, 5.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.4 blocks per game.

Auburn went 32-6 (15-3 SEC) that season and won the regular-season championship. For much of the season, they were ranked the No. 1 team in the country. They still earned themselves a top seed in the NCAA Tournament and went on a run to the Final Four, the second ever in program history.