Kentucky commit Robert Dillingham to sign with Overtime Elite, leave Donda Academy: Sources

Publish date: 2024-05-21

Top California basketball recruit Robert Dillingham, a five-star Kentucky commit, is leaving Donda Academy and has signed with Overtime Elite, multiple sources close to his recruitment told The Athletic.

Dillingham will be on a scholarship deal with Overtime Elite, which will preserve his NCAA eligibility and allow him to seek NIL deals.
Dillingham is the No. 9-ranked senior in the nation, per the 247Sports Composite Rating.
The point guard committed to the Wildcats in June.

Backstory

The No. 1 player in California and the No. 2 point guard in the nation, Dillingham was the top-ranked player enrolled at Donda Academy, a private school founded by Ye, formerly known as Kanye West. Following backlash from recent remarks made by Ye, Donda Academy recently announced that it was shutting down for the school year, leaving top recruits such as Dillingham and AJ Johnson without an academic home.

Prior to being shut down, Donda Academy had attracted Dillingham and other elite prep players to play for the Donda Doves with the appeal of a nationwide travel schedule against top teams around the country. The team played its inaugural game in February and was scheduled to play in The Hoophall Classic and the Kentucky Play-By-Play Classic showcases this winter, but those invitations were rescinded in recent weeks.

Dillingham is not the first player to leave the school after the program closed its doors, as teammates JJ Taylor and Chuck Bailey III announced their exits from the academy. Taylor is the No. 13-ranked senior and Bailey is the No. 34-ranked senior in California.

Dillingham’s plan to sign with Overtime Elite, a company that has launched a basketball league from scratch last year and has shocked the sport’s ecosystem by signing and paying highly ranked high school players, will not affect his collegiate eligibility.

Dillingham’s eligibility

A source familiar with Dillingham’s recruitment told The Athletic that Dillingham went through university compliance to make certain that this deal with Overtime Elite would not jeopardize his college eligibility. – Tucker

Fit with Overtime Elite

This is a great landing spot for a high-level prospect like Dillingham to finish his high school career after Donda imploded. Getting coached in a professional environment by former UConn head coach Kevin Ollie, former Virginia coach Dave Leitao and former Providence All-American and NBA player Ryan Gomes at OTE for a season before heading to Kentucky is a major plus in his development.

Even before Donda folded, there was mutual interest between Dillingham and OTE. He was invited to the inaugural OTE Opening Night, a showcase of top prospects at Overtime’s 103,000-square facility, on Oct. 20. Dillingham put on a show there: 36 points, five rebounds, four steals, three assists and an array of slick-dribbling, smooth-scoring highlights. His recruitment to OTE kicked into high gear during that event.

The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie has two Overtime Elite players, twins Amen and Ausar Thompson, in the top 10 of his latest 2023 NBA mock draft. The Thompson twins are in their second year training at the company’s state-of-the-art facility in midtown Atlanta. – Tucker

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Kentucky’s current recruiting class

Kentucky has commitments from four top-30 players in the 2023 class, per the 247Sports Composite: No. 2 Justin Edwards (small forward), No. 6 Aaron Bradshaw (center), No. 9 Dillingham (point guard) and No. 29 Reed Sheppard (combo guard). Dillingham and the others are expected to sign letters of intent to play for the Wildcats during college basketball’s early signing period, which begins on Nov. 9 and ends Nov. 16. Kentucky could also add No. 1 overall prospect DJ Wagner by the end of the fall signing period, which would give John Calipari his latest No. 1-ranked class. – Tucker

Calipari’s recruiting prowess

Since Calipari arrived, Kentucky has signed the nation’s top class eight times: 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2017 and 2020. Every Calipari class from 2009-2020 ranked top-three, before the Wildcats fell to No. 5 in 2021 and No. 9 in 2022. – Tucker

Required reading

(Photo: Michael Clubb / Lexington Herald-Leader / Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

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