Bronny James wasn’t the only player the Los Angeles Lakers took in the 2024 NBA Draft (despite what social media might have you believe). Their first-round pick was former Tennessee superstar Dalton Knecht, and by the looks of things, LeBron James is a big fan.
Per Yahoo Sports, LeBron spoke glowingly of the Lakers’ No. 17 overall pick. He went so far as to say that Knecht was his favorite draft prospect outside of his own son.
“Dalton, besides Bronny, was my favorite player in college basketball… I did not think he would fall to 17 at all,” LeBron said.
Knecht’s fall to 17 at last month’s draft was certainly a surprise to more than just LeBron. A number of analysts were quite surprised if not outright shocked that he fell that far after the year he had with the Volunteers.
This past season at Tennessee, Knecht averaged 21.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game as the team went 27-9, won the SEC regular season title and reached the Elite Eight en route to a No. 5 overall finish.
Knecht earned the SEC Player of the Year award, was a consensus First-Team All-American and won both the Julius Erving and Riley Wallace Awards for his contributions to the team.
Will Dalton Knecht turn into a superstar for the Lakers?
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