'A proven commodity': Tennessee's Dalton Knecht projected as top-five pick in one NBA mock draft

Dalton Knecht apparently can be more than just a lottery pick in this summer’s NBA Draft. The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor recently projected Tennessee’s star transfer wing as the No. 4 overall pick to the Detroit Pistons in his latest mock draft.

“Is this pick too high for Knecht, who will be a 23-year-old rookie?” O’Connor wrote. “Perhaps it is. But here’s my thought process behind this choice: The Pistons, one of the NBA’s worst teams, have few certainties on their roster. Cade Cunningham is blossoming, and they have to provide him with some stability. 

“Knecht is a proven commodity: a good off-ball scorer who provides a lot of effort. And maybe, just maybe, the on-ball stuff will pop just like it did at Tennessee, providing Cade with the go-to scoring partner that none of his teammates have become.”

O’Connor described Knecht as a “do-it-all scorers from all areas of the floor who has a tendency to catch fire” and compared him to “shades of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Max Strus.”

Knecht’s pluses listed by The Ringer were his range on his 3-point shot, being a talented shooter off the dribble, an ambidextrous finisher at the rim a dynamic playmaker and “an active and aware cutter who’s always looking for opportunities”.

The biggest minus was Knecht’s defense. Also mentioned was his struggle to score against size in some games this season. 

Dalton Knecht: Consensus First Team All-American, SEC Player of the Year, Naismith award finalist

Knecht, the 6-foot-6 Northern Colorado transfer, starred for Tennessee this season on his way to becoming a consensus First Team All-American and a finalist for the Naismith Player of the Year award. He averaged 21.1 points per game this season and averaged 25.5 per game in SEC play, helping him win SEC Player of the Year and First Team All-SEC honors.

Knecht scored a career-high 40 points in Tennessee’s 85-81 loss to Kentucky on March 9 at Thompson-Boling Arena and had 37 in the Elite Eight loss to Purdue on Sunday, setting a new Tennessee NCAA Tournament scoring record.

He scored 103 points over four games in the NCAA Tournament, setting another Tennessee record.

In 31 games during the regular season, he scored 25 or more points 10 time this season, 30 or more points seven times, 35 or more points five times and 39 or more points four times, with two 39-point games to go with the 40 he scored against Kentucky.

25.5 points per game in SEC play was highest in the league in 22 seasons

Knecht’s 21.1 points points per game came on 46.1% from the field and 39.1% from the 3-point line. He added 4.9 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game, too. 

He averaged 24.8 points in true road games, shooting 50.8% from the field and 43.0% from the 3-point line. He had 13 or more points in all 11 road games this season and had 22 or more in eight road games and 32 or more in three road games.

Knecht’s 25.5 points per game in SEC play during the regular season made him the league’s highest-scoring player over the last 22 seasons. He was also the highest scoring player in conference play for any Division I team this season and was the highest scoring player from any Power 6 conference since 2019-20.

His 36 points at Georgia on January 13 and 39 points against Florida on January 16 made him the first SEC player with back-to-back 35-point games since Shaquille O’Neal in 1991. 

Knecht’s six straight games with 25 or more points between January 10 and January 30 — 28 at Mississippi State, 36 at Georgia, 39 vs. Florida, 25 vs. Alabama, 32 at Vanderbilt and 31 vs. South Carolina — made him the first player to do so since Devan Downey in 2010.