John Calipari giving Rob Dillingham 'ultimate green light' -- with a caveat

Robert Dillingham‘s decision to commit to Kentucky last June and sign in November wasn’t seen as a unanimous home-run hit for either side, at least on the outside looking in. The five-star guard was known to play with flair, best when he had the freedom to rock out and dance with the ball in his hands. He clearly had the gifts to be a highlight superstar, but would it translate to winning basketball in a structured system under John Calipari? Factor in the Wildcats’ relentless pursuit of DJ Wagner — a ball-dominant guard in his own right — and the fit was interesting, for lack of a better word.

Could the two play together? Would Calipari embrace the beautiful chaos that is Dillingham’s game, and on the flip side, would Dillingham embrace Calipari’s structure?

To the immense credit of all parties involved, so far, so good.

Overcoming mental hurdles

That pairing was put to the test for the first time publicly on Wednesday when the Wildcats made their 2023 GLOBL JAM debuts against Team Germany, an 81-73 victory. Wagner would finish with 16 points on 7-15 shooting and 2-5 from three to go with six assists, two rebounds, two steals and two blocks in 33:15 of action. He turned it over five times, but all in all, a strong debut for the blue-chip freshman.

“He didn’t make shots today,” Calipari said following the win. “Normally he’d end this game with more than 16 points — he missed some layups, he missed some other things. I’m trying to tell these guys, the greatest thing that we can learn here is how to clear your mind, you’re in a zone of, ‘I’m playing against that guy. If I miss a shot, if I turn it over, it has no bearing on me beating that guy.’ So you clear your mind and you don’t have to play up to anything or to prove anything, just play.”

“The ultimate green light to go play”

As for Dillingham, the dynamic scoring guard added six points on 3-9 shooting to go with three rebounds, one assist and zero turnovers in 17:28. He had two crafty between-the-leg stepback pull-ups and one acrobatic finish off the glass through contact while also trying his hand at a few other unnecessarily difficult shot attempts.

Calipari’s take? Well, the exact reason why you sign a kid like Dillingham. If you’re going to bring in a flashy talent capable of fireworks, you’ve got to give him the lighter to set them off.

But the Hickory, N.C. native can’t burn his head coach in the process. That trust is a two-way street.

“Got to try to figure out Robert the same way (mentally). He needs some space to let himself go some and I’m gonna let him,” Calipari said. “You just can’t take bad shots. When you have the ultimate green light to go play with the ball and shoot, you can’t take bad shots. You can’t just because I’m letting you — just go get a good one. I thought he did some good stuff today.”

Playing and learning together

The pair of five-star freshmen shined in their own ways in their unofficial debuts as Wildcats, Wagner as an attacker and finisher and Dillingham as a creator and playmaker. The former started at point guard while the latter came off the bench, trading off ball-handling duties while also sharing extended time in the backcourt together. And it worked, certainly for mid-July.

It’s a system that works for Wagner, the Camden, N.J. native adding that he’s learned just as much from Dillingham as his backcourtmate has hopefully learned from him. The two have come along nicely together, and Wagner believes that on-court chemistry will only grow stronger as the season inches closer and real games begin.

This is just a preview of what’s to come.

“It’s been great, you know, going to practice every day and just learning from each other. Coach has been helping us with that a lot, just telling us to be ourselves and to play our game,” Wagner told KSR. “He’s a great player and he’s definitely helped me a lot just by making the right plays and even helping me make the right plays for him. So he’s a great player, for sure.

“And I feel like as the season goes on, we all just play better more and more. The more we get to practice, the more we get to play together. He’s just gonna get better and better. He’s a great player.”

Adou Thiero enjoys the show

Sophomore forward Adou Thiero appreciates the opportunity to play with both. On one hand, Wagner and Dillingham will get buckets at a high rate, an electric backcourt capable of putting on a show. On the other, if they miss, the new-and-improved cleanup specialist will be there to finish whatever the duo can’t.

It’s a win-win for Thiero, who was among the clear standouts of Kentucky’s event-opening win, going for nine points on 3-6 shooting to go with seven rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks in 31:43.

“When they get open shots, we want them to shoot it. Rob can create and get to the mid-range, DJ is getting to the hoop, and we love it,” Thiero told KSR. “Every time they get a chance to do that, I’m happy to let them do it. I’ll just be there to clean it up.”