Dalton Knecht Exemplified Great Parts of the NCAA Transfer Portal

Tennessee Volunteers guard Dalton Knecht came to the program by way of the NCAA Transfer Portal, a move that paid off for both sides.

Tennessee guard Dalton Knecht (3) makes a jump shot against Purdue during the second half of the / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

Tennessee Volunteers guard Dalton Knecht came to the program by way of the NCAA Transfer Portal, a move that paid off for both sides.

One year ago, Tennessee guard Dalton Knecht was three weeks removed from finishing a 12-20 season with Northern Colorado, a small Division-1 program in Greeley, Colorado. Flash forward twelve months, and Knecht is the reigning SEC Player of the Year, a consensus first-team All-American, and is projected as the No. 15 pick in the upcoming NBA Draft, according to Bleacher Reports' latest mock draft.

He couldn't have achieved these feats without transferring to the University of Tennessee. However, the Vols profited off his breakout campaign, making their second Elite 8 appearance in program history and claiming the SEC regular season title. Both sides come out of the year much better off, and while they didn't accomplish the ultimate goal of winning a national championship, a lifelong bond has been formed between athlete and university.

Knecht transferred to Tennessee to get defensive instruction from head coach Rick Barnes, a mastermind on that end of the floor. However, he got so much more than helpful defensive slide pointers; Knecht got to run the show for a program desperate to make noise in March Madness. He managed to deliver, averaging 26 points per game in the tournament. Knecht scored 37 points in their Elite 8 loss to the Purdue Boilermakers, making an array of impressive three-point shots.

With Knecht off to the professional ranks, Tennessee will once again use the transfer portal to try to retool its roster. It won't find someone who provided Knecht's impact, but it's nice to have stories like this that can bolster a program and fanbase's confidence in the transfer portal, chaotic as it is.

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