Former Top-10 Pick to Earn New Chance with Charlotte Hornets

Having traded star guard LaMelo Ball this offseason, the Charlotte Hornets are set to enter an entirely new era next season. That’s been further cemented by multiple trades this week, the second of which netted the Hornets developmental guard Rob Dillingham.

On Saturday, per ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Hornets traded Buddy Hield — acquired earlier in the week — as well as cash to the Chicago Bulls in exchange for Dillingham.

The Chicago Bulls are trading Rob Dillingham to the Charlotte Hornets for Buddy Hield and cash, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/BgGtcm3imH
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 26, 2026

Drafted with the No. 8 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, Dillingham hasn’t yet lived up to his draft slot, though he still offers a highly interesting project for a team looking to build talent.

At 6-foot-2, Dilllingham was an undersized combo guard, but put together a highly impactful season at Kentucky. He averaged 15.2 points, dishing out 3.9 assists to 2.0 turnovers, and importantly shooting a blistering 45% on solid 3-point volume. The Timberwolves traded multiple assets to grab him in the top-10, and he seemed to be an important part of the team’s future.

As a rookie, Dillingham failed to truly assimilate himself into the rotation, averaging just 4.5 points and 2.0 assists while playing only 10 minutes per game. His second season with Minnesota went similarly, and he was traded mid-way through to Chicago.

With the Bulls, Dillingham showed slightly more, averaging 9.6 points in his final 30 games of the season. He was far from a true rotational piece, still shooting just 32% from three, though he at least showed things to build on.

Now, Dillingham lands with Charlotte, who’s in desperate need of backcourt talent. Ball is off to Western Conference pastures, leaving a group of rookie Kon Knueppel, Coby White, Dennis Schroder, and rookie Christian Anderson.

The fully-realized version of Dillingham is still an impactful NBA player. At this point, his size and defense are likely to be hinderances for his entire career, potentially leaving him outside of starting range. Though a player that can score at all three levels and make simple passing reads can still fit into winning cores.

Alongside players like Knueppel, Brandon Miller, Naz Reid, Hannes Steinbach and more, Dillingham could potentially find his niche as a spark-plug play-maker, helping the Hornets become more competitive in the East next season. The template for what he can become is already rostered in both White and Schroder.

If Dillingham isn't able to punch his way into a rebuilding lineup in Charlotte, he isn't likely to do so elsewhere.

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