Rob Dillingham catches the attention of Chris Finch and Russell Westbrook in the preseason finale

In the Timberwolves' 132-126 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Thursday, rookie guard Rob Dillingham played a preseason-best 26 minutes. He continued to show some of his upside, finishing the game with 15 points and 7 assists on 6-14 (42.9%) shooting from the field.

Former NBA MVP Russell Westbrook is starting his first season with the Nuggets, and Dillingham was a little overwhelmed when the nine-time NBA All-Star came up to him during the game and showed some love.

“This is crazy! I’ve watched Westbrook since I was a little kid, literally since I was in middle school,” Dillingham said. “I've seen Westbrook my whole life and it's crazy to know that he knows who I am.”

In five preseason games, Dillingham played 19.8 minutes per game and averaged 9 points, 6 assists and 2.2 rebounds on 33.3/35/100 shooting splits. He finished the list with strong outings against the Lakers and Nuggets, but was just 3 of 20 from the field in the other three games (though he had 9 assists and 3 steals against the 76ers). The 19-year-old clearly has potential, but is also pretty raw at this point.

Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch was asked what he thought of their first-round rookie's performance during training camp and the preseason, and he had a mixed reaction.

“Mixed. There are typical ups and downs. He needs to understand the benefits of his style of play,” Finch said. “I think he's going down a difficult path at the moment. He tries to push himself too hard. He needs to try a little harder and play with the flow, be a little more of a distributor at first.”

Dillingham had a strong 5-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio in the preseason and could see some minutes off the bench this year, but after acquiring Donte DiVincenzo, the Wolves have the luxury of being a little more patient with his Development.

“When he gets to the heart of the defense with a quick, decisive move, he can really find people,” Finch said. “Too much dribbling and defense, he's already losing height and weight, so he has to figure out how to win the battle early and not commit a foul.”

When Minnesota traded Dillingham with the No. 8 pick in last spring's NBA draft, it looked like he could be the team's backup point guard from day one. But he doesn't turn 20 until January, and it sounds like he's poised for a significant role.