Dalton Knecht’s winding journey to the NBA found its endpoint — finally.
The Prairie View High School product, whose college path included stops at Northeastern Junior College (Sterling), Northern Colorado and Tennessee, was chosen 17th overall by the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the NBA draft on Wednesday night in Brooklyn.
With L.A.’s selection, Knecht became the first Colorado high school basketball player to be drafted in the top 17 picks since Chauncey Billups was taken third overall by the Boston Celtics in 1997. Knecht is the 27th Colorado prep to be chosen in the NBA draft, according to CHSAANow.com, and the 15th taken in the first round.
It didn’t come without a little drama, however.
Projected to be taken in the lottery on Wednesday night, Knecht instead fell into the Lakers’ laps at No. 17. Given the voyage it took for him to get there, it was well worth the wait.
A native of Thornton, Knecht hit a growth spurt during the latter stages of his prep career. That and lagging grades kept him from going Division I right away. But after two years at Northeastern Junior College, Knecht transferred to Northern Colorado and led the Big Sky in scoring (20.2 ppg) his second and final season in Greeley.
The 6-foot-5 wing then raised his profile by leading Tennessee to the Elite Eight this past winter, averaging 21.7 points and 4.9 rebounds per game on 45.8% shooting as the SEC Player of the Year and a consensus first-team All-American.
Now he joins LeBron James, Anthony Davis and the Lakers, who were eliminated in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs by the Nuggets, but just got a new head coach in JJ Redick.
Colorado preps in first round of NBA draft
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| Name | High School | RD-OV | Team | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dalton Knecht | Prairie View | 1-17 | L.A. Lakers | 2024 |
| Derrick White | Legend | 1-29 | San Antonio | 2017 |
| Reggie Jackson | Palmer | 1-24 | Oklahoma City | 2011 |
| Jason Smith | Platte Valley | 1-20 | Miami | 2007 |
| Pat Garrity | Lewis-Palmer | 1-19 | Milwaukee | 1998 |
| Chauncey Billups | George Washington | 1-3 | Boston | 1997 |
| Brooks Thompson | Littleton | 1-27 | Orlando | 1994 |
| Mark Randall | Cherry Creek | 1-26 | Chicago | 1991 |
| Bill Garnett | Regis Jesuit | 1-4 | Dallas | 1982 |
| Tom Chambers | Fairview | 1-8 | San Diego | 1981 |
| Joe Barry Carroll | Denver East | 1-1 | Golden State | 1980 |
| Michael Ray Richardson | Manual | 1-4 | New York | 1978 |
| Scott Wedman | Mullen | 1-6 | Kansas City | 1974 |
| Ron Shavlik | Denver East | 1-4 | New York | 1956 |
| Chuck Darling | Denver South | 1-9 | Rochester | 1952 |
Source: CHSAANow.com
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