Dalton Knecht was the biggest steal of the 2024 NBA draft, and the Los Angeles Lakers are truly playing bandits.
In his fourth career start, the guard dropped 37 points on 12-of-16 shooting (9-of-12 from deep) with five rebounds and zero turnovers in a 124-118 win over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday. His nine 3-pointers tied the NBA single-game rookie record and matched similar nights by Keyonte George, Yogi Ferrell and Rodrigue Beaubois.
Remarkably, all three of these rookies posted their historic performances in February or March, after several months of seasoning. Knecht debuted in the NBA less than a month ago.
That performance included a stretch of 18 straight points scored for the Lakers. Of course, he hit the Crypto.com Arena with a Michael Jordan shrug after one of those 3-pointers.
You’d be forgiven if the Lakers’ preseason coverage led you to believe that Bronny James was the Lakers’ most important rookie, but Knecht was, and certainly still is, the bigger building block for the team’s future.
He really should never have made it to Los Angeles in the first place, but that’s how the draft ended. Knecht was widely expected to be a top-10 pick after a breakout season at Tennessee in which he showed his ability to score at the next level, especially with his 39.7% 3-point shooting, but his age of 23 could turn teams off. It’s easy to believe that a teenager can become a star, much less a guy who’s been two years since his first legal drink.
The Lakers weren’t that worried about potential, they just wanted a player who would improve them this season.
Knecht was a perfect fit for a team that always needed more shooting around LeBron James, but especially after a year in which he finished 24th in the NBA in 3-pointers. And because the cap-strapped Lakers were unable to add any impact players in free agency or via trades, Knecht was their biggest offseason addition player-wise.
So it’s a very good sign for the Lakers that the guy they drafted to make an immediate impact as a scorer just went off for 37 points. And it may not be a coincidence that the Lakers are off to a 10-4 start with six straight wins.