LOS ANGELES, CA. – The Los Angeles Lakers selected guard Dalton Knecht with the 17th overall pick in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft held Wednesday night in Brooklyn.
Knecht (6’5”, 212) averaged 21.7 points (45.8 FG%, 39.7 3P%, 77.2 FT%), 4.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 36 games (all starts) in his lone season at the University of Tennessee in 2023-24. A First Team All-America selection and SEC Player of the Year, the 23-year-old led the conference in points per game and ranked third in 3-point field goal percentage last season.
“It’s an extremely exciting night for the Los Angeles Lakers,” Lakers Vice President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Rob Pelinka said. “We would have never imagined a player as skilled and perfect for our needs would be there for us. We had him as a top 10 player unanimously across our scouting boards.”
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In 103 Division I games (79 starts) across one campaign at Tennessee and two seasons at Northern Colorado (2021-23), Knecht posted averages of 16.9 points (46.1 FG%, 38.3 3P%, 76.8 FT%), 5.2 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 29.8 minutes. The Colorado native scored in double figures in 75 of those contests, including 38 games with 20+ points, 11 games with 30+ points and one 40-point performance.
“His competitive nature stood out. He’s a three-level scorer. He’s a guy that’s going to defend,” Pelinka added. “He’s physical, he’s athletic and a 3-and-D player that every roster craves. He fits so well with our pillar pieces. There’s a lot of versatility to his game and he gives us a weapon that we currently don’t have on our roster.”
Knecht played two seasons at Northeastern Junior College (2019-21) after graduating from Prairie View High School in Henderson, Colo.
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