Many experts and analysts couldn’t believe that Dalton Knecht fell all the way to the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2024 NBA Draft this past summer.
Pairing a perimeter shooter like Knecht with Lebron James and Anthony Davis is a good thing on its own. But pairing Knecht with newly appointed head coach JJ Redick is when people really started to project a breakout season for the veteran from Tennessee.
Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes used tape of Redick’s playing days with Knecht while in Knoxville. The two pairing up was almost too good to be true and was also one of the first things that experts raved about on draft night.
“Playing now for JJ Redick, who is going to maximize more what Dalton Knecht can do off the ball and understanding and reading how to set your man up, come off screens, how to play without the basketball than JJ Redick? He did it his whole career,” ESPN’s Tim Legler said on draft night.
CBS Sports’ Adam Finkelstein added a similar thought.
“He’s not just a shooter, but he can run off screens and be a primary domino and unlock playbooks,” Finkelstein wrote. “For JJ Redick, a shooter himself, I like the coach-player fit because Redick will know how to use him.”
Although it is just preseason ball, a quick clip bouncing around social media on Wednesday shows just how well the Redick offense is working early on with Knecht cashing in a shot from the perimeter to hammer home the point.
JJ Redick is elite with the clipboard
(Via @bballbreakdown 🎥)
— Hoop Herald (@TheHoopHerald) October 17, 2024
More from RTI: Tennessee Point Guard Lands On Preseason All-SEC Team
Knecht first made his mark on his new team as he led all rookies in scoring during NBA Summer League action right after the draft. Knecht averaged 21.3 points per game during his summer league action with the Lakers.
The Lakers played their first preseason game on Oct. 4 in which Knecht once again impressed. Knecht tied Lakers guard Austin Reaves for the most points in the game, 16, while adding in three rebounds, two assists, one steal, and one block.
No. 17 pick Dalton Knecht hits the midrange J for his first bucket!
📺 MIN-LAL #NBAPreseason on NBA TV pic.twitter.com/zZJzLPsqDj
— NBA (@NBA) October 5, 2024
Knecht has played in four preseason games with the Lakers so far as he averages 13.8 points per game on 39.6 percent shooting from the floor.
The rookie out of Tennessee still has a lot to learn and growth to make but it’s encouraging to see the JJ Redick offense fairly in tune at this point in the season. Redick’s offensive game plan for Knecht should be advantageous for the rookie guard to find a comfortable spot on the floor early into the season.
It’ll just be up to Dalton Knecht to take advantage of it.
The Los Angeles Lakers and Dalton Knecht will tip off the regular season on Tuesday, Oct. 22, at home against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
