NC State lands five-star Robert Dillingham. Where does he rank in Wolfpack recruiting history?
Kevin Keatts has officially landed the top recruit of his N.C. State tenure.
Five-star 2023 point guard Robert Dillingham, a Hickory native currently playing for California’s Donda Academy, verbally committed to the Wolfpack over Kentucky, Kansas, Memphis and LSU on Wednesday afternoon via Instagram Live.
Dillingham, who previously played for Lincolnton’s Combine Academy, is N.C. State’s first 2023 commit as well as one of the Wolfpack’s top all-time commits in the internet recruiting era. Here’s a full list of where the junior stacks up among N.C. State’s top recruits since 2002, per 247Sports composite ratings.
Previous reporting: Will NC State basketball beat out Kentucky for this five-star recruit? Experts say yes
No. 1: PG Dennis Smith Jr., 2016
High school: Trinity Christian School (Fayetteville)
Rankings: Five-star 0.9975 recruit, No. 1 player in North Carolina, No. 3 point guard in the country and No. 7 overall recruit in the country
Wolfpack stats: 18.1 points, 6.2 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game over one season; 2016-17 ACC Rookie of the Year, All-Freshman pick and All-ACC second team pick; No. 9 overall pick in 2017 NBA Draft
No. 2: PG Robert Dillingham, 2023
High school: Donda Academy (Simi Valley, Calif.)
Rankings: Five-star 0.9966 recruit, No. 2 player in California, No. 1 point guard in the country and No. 8 overall recruit in the country
No. 3: PF C.J. Leslie, 2010
High school: Word of God Christian Academy (Raleigh)
Rankings: Five-star 0.9958 recruit, No. 1 player in North Carolina, No. 3 power forward in the country and No. 10 overall recruit in the country
Wolfpack stats: 13.7 points and 7.3 rebounds per game over three seasons; two-time All-ACC selection, ACC All-Freshman pick and 2012 ACC All-Tournament team pick; currently playing overseas
No. 4: PF J.J. Hickson, 2007
High school: Wheeler (Marietta, Ga.)
Rankings: Five-star 0.9951 recruit, No. 1 player in Georgia, No. 3 power forward in the country and No. 11 overall recruit in the country
Wolfpack stats: 14.8 points and 8.5 rebounds per game across one season; ACC All-Freshman selection; No. 19 overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft and played for five NBA teams from 2008 to 2016
No. 5: SG Rodney Purvis, 2012
High school: Upper Room Christian Academy (Raleigh)
Rankings: Five-star 0.9947 recruit, No. 1 player in North Carolina, No. 3 shooting guard in the country and No. 13 overall recruit in the country
Wolfpack stats: 8.3 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game over one seasons; transferred to UConn for his last three seasons and averaged 12.8 points per game; currently playing overseas
No. 6: SF T.J. Warren, 2012
High school: Brewster Academy (Wolfeboro, N.H.)
Rankings: Five-star 0.9917 recruit, No. 2 player in New Hampshire, No. 5 small forward in the country and No. 23 overall recruit in the country
Wolfpack stats: 18.5 points and 5.7 rebounds per game across two seasons; 2013-14 ACC Player of the Year, All-ACC First teamer and ACC All-Tournament Team pick after averaging 24.9 points on 52.5% shooting as a sophomore; No. 14 overall pick in 2012 NBA Draft and has averaged 15.5 points per game during seven seasons for the Phoenix Suns and Indiana Pacers
No. 7: SF Brandon Costner, 2005
High school: Seton Hall Preparatory School (West Orange, N.J.)
Rankings: Five-star 0.9904 recruit, No. 2 player in New Jersey, No. 4 small forward in the country and No. 23 overall recruit in the country
Accolades: 12.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game across four seasons; ACC All-Freshman team pick and All-ACC selection as a redshirt freshman in 2006-07; currently playing overseas
No. 8: PG Ryan Harrow, 2010
High school: Walton (Marietta, Ga.)
Rankings: Five-star 0.9901 recruit, No. 2 player in Georgia, No. 6 point guard in the country and No. 25 overall recruit in the country
Accolades: 9.3 points and 3.3 assists per game across one seasons; transferred to Kentucky and ultimately finished career at Georgia State, where he averaged 18 points per game over two years; currently playing overseas
No. 9: SG Courtney Fells, 2005
High school: Shannon (Shannon, Miss.)
Rankings: Four-star 0.9896 recruit, No. 2 player in Mississippi, No. 9 shooting guard in the country and No. 26 overall recruit in the country
Wolfpack stats: 9.5 points. 3.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game across four seasons; 2007 ACC All-Tournament selection who averaged a career-high 11.3 points as a senior in 2008-09; played a decade of overseas basketball
No. 10: PG Anthony “Cat” Barber, 2013
High school: Hampton (Hampton, Va.)
Rankings: Four-star 0.9895 recruit, No. 1 player in Virginia, No. 4 point guard in the country and No. 25 overall recruit in the country
Wolfpack stats: 14.5 points, 3.9 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game across three seasons; 2015-16 All-ACC and ACC All-Tournament pick after averaging a career-high 23.5 points and 4.5 assists per game; undrafted in 2106 but has carved out a successful joint career overseas and in the NBA G League
The next 10
No. 11: four-star 2020 Moravian Prep SF Josh Hall (0.9888)*
No. 12: four-star 2010 Virginia PG Lorenzo Brown (0.9855)
No. 13: four-star 2019 New Hampshire CG Jalen Lecque (0.9846)*
No. 14: four-star 2015 Florida SF Maverick Rowan (0.9834)
No. 15: four-star 2014 New Hampshire PF Abdul Malik Abu (0.9824)
No. 16: four-star 2012 Forsyth Country Day PG Tyler Lewis (0.9819)
No. 17: four-star West Brunswick PF Cedric Simmons (0.9813)
No. 18: four-star Turkey C Omer Yurtseven (0.9783)
T-No. 19: four-star 2016 Ohio point guard Markell Johnson (0.9769)
T-No. 19: four-star 2007 Mount Zion Christian Academy PF Tracy Smith (0.9769)
* Neither Hall nor Lecque ever appeared in a game for N.C. State, as both players opted to directly enter the NBA Draft out of high school after a post-graduate year.
Chapel Fowler is a recruiting reporter for The Fayetteville Observer and the USA TODAY Network. Reach him by email at cfowler@gannett.com or on Twitter at @chapelfowler.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: NC State basketball land five-star recruit Robert Dillingham