Report: UCLA Interested in Northern Colorado Transfer Dalton Knecht

The former junior college product exploded as a scorer with the Bears and is now drawing interest from top national programs.

With several rotation players likely departing the program, the Bruins have reached out to a transfer wing to try and fill gaps on the roster.

UCLA men’s basketball is in the mix for former Northern Colorado guard Dalton Knecht, according to a report from Mountain West Wire’s Sean Paul. The 6-foot-6 wing spent the past two seasons with the Bears after two seasons at Northeastern Junior College (CO).

Knecht has one year of eligibility remaining,

The Bruins join Arizona State, Arkansas, Colorado, Gonzaga, Grand Canyon, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa State, Kansas, Kentucky, LSU, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington and West Virginia as programs that have spoken to the Thornton, Colorado, native, per Paul.

Knecht primarily came off the bench during this first season with Northern Colorado, but he became a full-time starter his senior year. In 32 games, Knecht more than doubled his scoring production by averaging 20.2 points per game, shooting 47.9% from the field and 38.1% from beyond the arc.

His 2022-23 performance earned him All-Big Sky Second Team honors.

After junior guard Jaylen Clark declared for the 2023 NBA Draft on Wednesday, coach Mick Cronin may be looking for a player to pick up some of his production on the boards. Knecht – who boasts a similar build to Clark – could provide that for the Bruins after averaging 7.2 rebounds per game in 2022-2023.

Knecht was an NJCAA All-American at Northeastern Junior College before heading to Northern Colorado. In his sophomore season at Northeastern, Knecht averaged 23.9 points per game while shooting 51.2% percent from the field.

According to 247Sports, Knecht is the No. 6 transfer currently in the portal – above the likes of North Carolina guard Caleb Love, Washington State guard TJ Bamba and Arizona guard Kerr Kriisa.

UCLA is likely going to be in the market for an immediate scoring option in the starting lineup with guard Tyger Campbell, guard/forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. and guard Amari Bailey likely declaring for the 2023 NBA Draft. Additionally, with the loss of Clark to the draft process already, Cronin has plenty of minutes to hand out to potential newcomers.

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