Dalton Knecht Selected No. 17 Overall By Los Angeles Lakers I 2024 NBA Draft Grades I CBS Sports

Dalton Knecht Selected No. 17 Overall By Los Angeles Lakers I 2024 NBA Draft Grades I CBS Sports

Dalton connect is off the board a pure score the SEC Player of the Year scored 780 points this past season passing Dale Ellis for second place on Tennessee single season scoring list finishing right behind leader Allen Houston a consensus first team All-American and what a journey to the NBA uh he started in junior college went to Northern Colorado then he transferred to Tennessee and became a star in the SEC and now headed to the Lakers to play for JJ reck and play alongside LeBron James back here in Adam pickles Gary parish and Avery Johnson um A+ A+ yeah this they didn’t take bronnie so you’re staying here I’ll stay I’ll apprciate this is an absolute no-brainer uh someone who I would have taken in the top seven I think um big time scorer big-time shop maker he’s not just a floor spacer who has extreme gravity spacing the floor for guys like LeBron and AD obviously but he’s going to be able to run off screens and potentially be a primary Domino maybe later on in his career and unlock some Playbook things for JJ reck who was a shooter in and of himself I actually like this fit all kidding aside about what kind of Coach JJ reck is going to be he was an elite shooter and an elite movement shooter who understands how it’s what’s going to be necessary to get guys like that open and when ad and LeBron come off the floor and you need somebody to generate some offense in your second unit I think Dalton connect is going to be absolutely perfect for the Lakers love this pick would not have understood if they didn’t make it still don’t understand why other people didn’t make it earlier I’ve had some NBA front office members tell me they believe D connect will be the best offensive rookie in the NBA next season now that’s not a consensus opinion but I know people who hold it and if you’re the Lakers and you are able to add not just a shooter that’s what folks always say you need shooting around LeBron and AD he’s not just a shooter he is a shooter but he can also Bounce It shot create like really make plays with the ball in his hands and when you add that to a core of LeBron James and Anthony Davis if you’re JJ reic and this is going to be your first team ever you got to be pretty excited about one of the reasons why Tennessee was so good this season was because of Dalton connect a and you saw him night out yeah okay I’m just trying to be helpful all the other players in team and that that that roster yeah you got to think about Anthony Davis historically have been injury prone LeBron James is going in what his 21st year 22nd 22nd year then you got to have guys that can score the ball especially on nights when those guys are missing game weather is for rest uh but I love this pick he’s not just a shooter he finishes well at the basket he knows how to create contact when he goes to the basket but when you look at this young man this kid is one of four players in the history of Tennessee basketball to average more than 20 points you talking about guys like you heard of Bernard King Ernie granfield Allen Houston that’s some pretty good select company yeah Bernie and Ernie go go go watch that out Alan is pretty good uh Matt why the heck did Dalton connect slip to 17 well I’ve been texting with a few different sources around the league over the past 45 minutes or so and it’s all speculative there’s nothing wrong with the medical I was told by team multiple franchises uh it’s age in part connect is older um some defensive questions although I would refute that he’s not a terrible Defender and you know Rob Dillingham who is a non-fender doesn’t have connect eyes isn’t as good of a shooter went much earlier than him and then it is about specific fit a couple things I want to get into here with connect one this does bring uh Credence to what a variety of NBA people told me going into the night that said some of these mock drafts are going to be drastically wrong and we’ve seen some of that here and there with Ron Holland no one had him as a top five pick Zack Edy no one had almost no one had him as a top 10 pick no one had connect out of the top 10 or 12 in fact Zack Edy and Dalton connect were the two best players in college basketball last season they met in the regional final of course in the NCAA tournament I don’t know if there’s a single person on the planet other than maybe members of Zack ‘s family and the Purdue coaching staff and maybe not even them that thought that Zack Edy would be drafted not just before Dalton connect but multiple spots almost 10 spots before Dalton connect was in fact taken there but he’s got amazing upside I tell you what JJ reck averaged fewer than 1 his new coach Dalton connect he averaged fewer than 13 points for his NBA career obviously had a long career a successful a good career I think Dalton connect will wind up averaging more than JJ reick did his new coach in his NBA career I think he can be just as JJ was a better than 40% three-point shooter he’s got confrontational athleticism I think he can can be a good quality help Defender there he’s got length he’s got size he’s a good passer this was a baffling decision to me dton connect sliding all the way to the Lakers at 17 registers as one of the three or four biggest stories on night one of the NBA draft but the Lakers and JJ Reit got an absolute gift I promise you in no way did they think it remotely possible that a player of dton connects capability and offensive Acumen would have fallen to them and they just got one of the best deals of the entire draft

The CBS Sports HQ crew give their grade for the Lakers selecting Dalton Knecht in the 2024 NBA Draft.

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