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Dalton Knecht, a Tennessee Volunteers men's basketball player who will be part of the 2024 NBA draft, said goodbye to UT fans and coaching staff with a heartfelt message on Instagram on Friday.
"Thank you Rocky Top. You will always be home," Dalton Knecht wrote.
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Knecht saw his fame rise in the 2023-24 season as a key guard for Tennessee under Rick Barnes. He used his extra COVID-19 year eligibility to play one season with them and got the spotlight he required to become the fans' favorite.
Hailing from Thornton, Colorado, Dalton Knecht played for Prairie View High School, averaging 21.0 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. He played for Northeastern Junior College, averaging 13.3 ppg as a freshman and 23.9 as a sophomore.
After transferring to Northern Colorado, he led the Big Sky Conference with 20.2 ppg and was named second-team All-Big Sky as a senior in 2022-23, his second season at the school.
Dalton Knecht then transferred to the Tennessee Vols to get the best out of him and increase his draft stock. He utilized his COVID-19 extra-year eligibility wisely and got the much-needed attention there.
After scoring 17 points in the Vols' season opener against Tennessee Tech, he had 37 against North Carolina in a 100-92 loss on Nov. 10. He went on to set a career high of 40 against Kentucky in an 85-81 loss.
He was named the Southeastern Conference Player of the Year and SEC Newcomer of the Year and was considered one of college basketball's best players by many.
Dalton Knecht is expected to be a top 10 prospect in the upcoming NBA draft
Dalton Knecht is one of the 78 prospects invited to the 2024 draft combine next week in Chicago. At the combine, he'll likely go through medical tests.
On Friday, ESPN's Jonathan Givony posted a picture of the top 10 2024 draft prospects. He wrote that the rankings were sent by the league to the teams and were based on factors like publicly available rankings, an expert panel and a scouting service.
The Perth Wildcats' Alexandre Sarr, who plays in the Australian National Basketball League, topped the ranking. According to the post, Dalton Knecht was in the seven-to-10 tier.
