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Ex-Tennessee star scores 20 straight for Lakers
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Ex-Tennessee star scores 20 straight for Lakers

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The Lakers Show turned into the Dalton Knecht Show at Footprint Center.

The former Tennessee basketball star scored 35 points on 10-for-18 shooting off the bench in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 128-122 overtime victory against the Phoenix Suns on Thursday.

His stats include an impressive stretch in which he took control of the game for the Lakers starting in the fourth quarter, where the 6-foot-1 guard scored 20 straight points to force overtime. The win puts the Lakers at 2-3 in the NBA preseason.

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The reigning SEC Player of the Year hit a hard three-pointer from the key on Suns’ 7-3 center Bol Bol to force overtime, a shot that even impressed Lakers veterans LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

β€œIt was an unbelievable performance,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said after the game. β€œ(TNT analyst) Reggie (Miller) and I were talking about it before the game and he said, ‘It was high praise to say he’s in the 1% of shooters’ and I’m like, ‘No, he is in the 1′.% of shooters.’ The thing about him is just the mentality. It was very clear during pre-season, during training camp and so far in games. He is not afraid of this moment.”

He added with a grin: “My assistants tried to tell me not to put him back in the game in four minutes, so I’ll get them after that.”

Through the five preseason games, Knecht is averaging 18.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists per game and shooting 43.6% from the field. He fell to the Lakers for the No. 17 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.

Then, Knecht and the Lakers will take on Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors on Friday at 10:30 PM ET to wrap up the preseason. Knecht’s rookie season in the NBA officially kicks off against the Minnesota Timberwolves on October 22 at 10pm ET on TNT.

Dalton Knecht stats Thursday vs Suns

Here’s a full look at Knecht’s box score from Thursday’s NBA game against the Suns:

  • Points: 35
  • FGs: 10 of 18
  • Rebounds: Seven
  • Assists: A
  • Steals: Two
  • Blocks: Two
  • Turnover: Two
  • Violations: A