Two more Kentucky Wildcats began their NBA careers on Wednesday night in Brooklyn, NY.
Reed Sheppard (No. 3; Houston Rockets) and Rob Dillingham (No. 8; Minnesota Timberwolves via San Antonio Spurs) both heard their names called during the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft. With another pair of talented prospects leaving Lexington for the professional ranks, it marks the seventh time in school history that two Kentucky players have been selected among the Top 10 picks in an NBA Draft — five of those instances happening during the John Calipari era.
According to UK statistician Corey Price, Sheppard and Dillingham, who both came off the bench during their lone seasons at UK, join an exclusive group of former ‘Cats.
- 1949 (Alex Groza; No. 2, Wah Wah Jones; No. 9)
- 1984 (Sam Bowie; No. 2, Melvin Turpin; No. 6)
- 2010 (John Wall; No. 1, DeMarcus Cousins; No. 5)
- 2011 (Enes Kanter; No. 3, Brandon Knight; No. 8)
- 2012 (Anthony Davis; No. 1, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist; No. 2)
- 2015 (Karl-Anthony Towns; No. 1, Willie Cauley-Stein; No. 6)
- 2024 (Reed Sheppard; No. 3, Rob Dillingham; No. 8)
Now for the bad news. Price also notes that, since 1985, Kentucky is just the second program to lose in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament with a pair of Top 8 picks in the following draft since Jason Kidd and Lamond Murray did the same with California during the 1993-1994 season.
According to UK Athletics, Sheppard and Dillingham became the 139th and 140th Wildcats throughout league history to be picked in the NBA Draft. Of those 140 draftees, 49 of them played under Calipari. Kentucky has seen at least one player selected in 17 straight drafts, the longest streak of the modern era (1966).
We could see a couple more join them when the draft continues on Thursday afternoon for round two at 4:00 p.m. EST on ESPN. Antonio Reeves and Justin Edwards are projected second-round picks.
