Dalton Knecht was seen as one of the biggest steals in this year’s draft, falling to the Los Angeles Lakers with the 17th overall pick. And recently, he’s starting to find his feet after a somewhat slow start, giving the Lakers the offensive boost the team needs off the bench.

He has also endeared himself to his teammates and the coaches, who have all spoken highly of him since the offseason. But perhaps his closest relationship is with guard Austin Reaves.

In fact, this goes back to Knecht’s time in college at the University of Tennessee, when Reaves revealed that he noticed his play there and started texting him after games.

“One day I saw him randomly going crazy doing what he did in college and obviously I was very impressed with the way he scores the ball,” Reaves said after practice on Monday. “The way he helped his Tennessee team to a lot of wins was special and I would like to show my respect if I really like guys who have a lot of talent, and he is one of those guys. I texted him after the games I watched and congratulated him on the accolades he was giving out. It really is.”

Reaves and many others were impressed with Knecht’s season at Tennessee, where he would win SEC Player of the Year. Most expected Knecht to be drafted in the top 10, but when he continued to drop and eventually the Lakers were on the board, Reaves felt the choice was obvious.

“It was crazy. I don’t know if I would say I was looking, but I was kind of paying attention and when I didn’t see his name appear on the board, I was like, ‘Hmm, what’s going on?'” Reaves noted.

“And then it kept getting 13, 14, 15 and I was like as soon as it hit us at 17, in my head it was a no-brainer. I don’t know what the process was above, but if I was a gambler, which I can’t bet on, but if I was, that would have been my choice. I texted him that night and congratulated him and since then we’ve been shooting together after practice and building a relationship. He’s a good boy.”

Reaves and the Lakers were on the same page when they quickly made the decision to move Knecht to purple and gold and so far things are going great.

That first year in the NBA can be very difficult, but establishing relationships helps ease that transition and make players more comfortable. For Knecht, having that relationship with Reaves is a bonus and there is no doubt that both are happy that he is now here with the Lakers.

Anthony Davis thinks every shot Lakers rookie Dalton Knecht makes goes in

Dalton Knecht has the complete trust of all his teammates as a shooter and for the most part, he has proven them right. Lakers superstar Anthony Davis recently spoke about this, saying he thinks every shot Knecht makes goes in.

“Every time he shoots the ball, I think it’s going in. That’s why we get so frustrated and angry when he doesn’t shoot,” Davis said of Knecht. “He’s a great player. He can defend, he can shoot, he can put it on the ground, he can pass, so he can do it all. But if he does his pieces where he gets hot, that’s a big boost for our team and we can feed that energy and most of the time we run away from it.

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