Over the past few weeks, Sacramento Kings' fans have watched rookie two-way player Dylan Cardwell find himself in the NBA. And they are loving it. His meteoric rise continued against the Portland Trail Blazers as he picked up the first double-double of his already impressive young career.
The Kings quite smartly signed Cardwell as an undrafted player after the 2025 NBA Draft. That's something that will keep coming up in his career. Dylan is going to be a major player in the league, and the fact that he went undrafted is going to be a future trivia fact about him that blows people's minds.
His energetic, positive attitude draws the fans to him and has endeared him to his team members. It also doesn't hurt that Cardwell is a defensively-minded center, which is something the Kings desperately needed, and has a tendency to throw down highlight-worthy dunks that fire the crowd up.
Keeping all of that in mind, it's important to remember that Cardwell is on a two-way contract. That means he has limited NBA games he can play. The Kings need to do whatever is necessary to make permanent room for Cardwell on the main roster, which has become increasingly obvious.
Dylan Cardwell has a big game and takes things to the next level
During last night's loss to the Blazers, Cardwell collected the first double-double of his NBA career. That's a big deal as it demonstrates how quickly he's evolved in the league and how much of a fighter he is. His final stat line was 12 points, 10 rebounds, two assists, one steal, and one block.
Unfortunately, he also fouled out of the game. If he hadn't, Cardwell's numbers might have looked even better. That can be forgiven, though, as he's a rookie center and they tend to collect fouls like Ash collects Pokemon. Fellow rookie Maxime Raynaud has had similar issues.
Speaking of Raynaud, he was the first breakout rookie for the Kings this season, largely thanks to him filling in as the starting center during the two-month injury absence of Domantas Sabonis. Additional injuries made room for Cardwell, and now it's hard to imagine the team without him.
Like Maxime Raynaud, Dylan Cardwell has found his NBA legs incredibly quickly, and the Kings need to lean into that. Sacramento may have lost to the Blazers, but seeing Cardwell get that double-double is a big deal for him, the team, and the fans. He is a key of this franchise's future.