In the end, the Chicago Bulls discovered what makes Rob Dillingham so desirable: His value as an asset.
The Bulls traded Dillingham to the Charlotte Hornets for Buddy Hield and cash — hardly a spectacular return for a player the franchise's old regime believed could realize the potential that made him the No. 8 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.
The Minnesota Timberwolves came to the same painful conclusion when they sent Dillingham to Chicago as the main on-court piece of the Ayo Dosunmu trade.
(Flipping Dillingham to Charlotte for a veteran shooter like Hield actually, somehow, should make that Dosunmu trade more tolerable for Bulls fans.)
The former Kentucky standout is still young; he could catch on with another NBA team and become a valuable asset on the court. But at this point in his career, as Chicago just learned, his potential is his most attractive asset.
Bulls learned Rob Dillingham's true value the hard way
Trading a former top-10 pick who already has four NBA seasons under his belt and is just 21 years old would usually be a hard pill to swallow. But this is already the second time Dillingham has been dealt (not even counting his draft-night move from San Antonio to Minnesota), and the evidence is beginning truly pile up.
Dillingham is better in theory than in reality.
Entering the 2024 draft, you didn't have to squint to see a future professional microwave scorer. Despite weighing just 165 pounds, Dillingham has an elite first step and showed he could score at all three levels during his lone season at Kentucky.
His size would probably always hold him back from being a legitimate starter (Minnesota was confusingly high on him), but at times he looked like an off-the-bench bucket, not unlike former Wildcat Malik Monk.
That never came to fruition during his short stint in Chicago, and the Bulls have simply taken the "L" and moved on.
Bryson Graham is quickly erasing mistakes of Chicago's past
Hield will be an immediate contributor for a Bulls team short on shooting and veteran leadership. The 33-year-old will help space the floor and let franchise cornerstones Caleb Wilson and Matas Buzelis do their thing.
With a partially guaranteed player option for 2027-28, he's also on what can be considered an expiring contract. Ditto for Norman Powell ($22.6 million team option) and Zach Collins ($8.5 million team option). Chicago is set up well to clear cap space for next summer.
In just one offseason, executive VP of basketball operations Bryson Graham has simultaneously given the organization a better present and future.
The Dillingham trade is just the latest piece of evidence.
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