Lakers LeBron James on Dalton Knecht Performance '16 Teams F----- Up'

Jeremy Hanna | Nov 20, 2024

Oct 26, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) and guard Dalton Knecht (4) reacts to a ref’s call against the Sacramento Kings during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images / Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images

Rookie small forward Dalton Knecht is officially making his presence known in the NBA.

In the Los Angeles Lakers' victory over the Utah Jazz, Knecht recorded 37 points, five total rebounds, and one steal, singlehandedly improving his Rookie of the Year odds from +1800 to +225.

Not only was this Knecht's career-high in terms of points, but it set the Lakers rookie record for most 3-pointers in a game (9) and tied the NBA rookie record for most 3-pointers in a game.

So far this season, Knecht has averaged 11.3 points, 2.5 total rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 0.5 steals per game.

While this may have surprised some NBA fans and experts, it didn't surprise LeBron James, who has been keeping an eye on Knecht since he played at Tennessee.

"I don’t know," James said, per Jovan Buha of The Athletic. "The same s--- I said last year. Everybody on the internet calls me a liar all the time. They say I lie about every-f---ing-thing. So what am I now?"

LeBron on what he saw in Dalton Knecht last season when he praised him while he was at Tennessee: “I don’t know. The same shit I said last year. Everybody on the internet calls me a liar all the time. They say I lie about every-fucking-thing. So what am I now? I’ve been said it.” pic.twitter.com/bPBU1VJGiB

— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) November 20, 2024

When further asked how they found Knecht, James got candid. "They didn't find DK. The other 16 teams f---ed up."

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Anyone who paid attention to Knecht's collegiate career would easily agree with King James.

Knecht first started at Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colorado. In his freshman year, Knecht averaged 13.3 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 1.1 assists per game. As a sophomore, he averaged 23.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, and two assists per game.

Knecht continued his college basketball career with Northern Colorado where he averaged 8.9 points, 3.6 total rebounds, and 0.9 assists per game.

In his senior year, Knecht doubled almost every statistic, he led the Big Sky Conference with 20.2 points per game while also averaging 7.2 total rebounds and 1.8 assists. He was named second-team All-Big Sky for 2023.

After that, Knecht decided to take the extra year of eligibility from playing during the COVID-19 pandemic and transferred to Tennessee for the 2023-24 season.

In his final NCAA season, Knecht averaged 21.7 points, 4.9 total rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 0.7 steals per game. He received countless accolades for the season, including first-team All-SEC, SEC Newcomer of the Year, SEC Player of the Year, the Julius Erving Award, and a consensus first-team All-American.

Since being named a starter, Knecht has only continued to improve as a player. It will be exciting to see where he lands at the end of the 2024-25 NBA season.

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