What Dalton Knecht said after being picked by the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Draft

What former Tennessee wing Dalton Knecht said Wednesday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn after being picked at No. 17 overall in the NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Lakers:

What drives him in his basketball career

“I’d say my ‘why’ is just I feel like I’ve been underrated my whole entire life, ever since I was coming out of high school. So I’ve always had a chip on my shoulder and to this day I’ll always have that chip on my shoulder to go out there and prove people wrong.”

His message to players that might be coming out of high school without a scholarship offer to play basketball at the next level  

“I would say to all the kids out there that don’t have offers, you don’t have to be the highest-rated kid in your class or whatever. You could always go junior college or whatever type of route and be different. You can make your own path and find your way.”

How it feels to be playing alongside Lebron James after getting picked by the Los Angeles Lakers

“It feels great. You get to play with one of the greats ever touch a basketball. And it’s going to be exciting. (I’m ready) to go put on a show for LA.”

JJ Redick talking about the importance of two-way players

“Yeah, like you said, AD (Anthony Davis) is there. And also I get to learn from one of the greatest in Bron and AD. They’ll help me each step of the way on both sides of the floor. And I’m excited to go out there and compete.”

What he has been doing to prepare for the transition from college basketball to the NBA

“Just learning how to take care of my body constantly. I would say that was the biggest thing that I was focusing. And kind of just being around those type of NBA guys that have been there, done that. So just kind of learned from them.”

If he thought during the NBA Draft process about where he might want to land or if he tried to ignore it 

“I would say a mixture. I was just trying to be the best version of myself and trying to always push myself to be better and be better than yesterday.”

The video from March that showed Lebron James mentioning Knecht by name after the Tennessee-Purdue game

“Yeah, I remember that clip. I woke up and rolled out of bed and I thought it was fake because tons of people were texting me. I was just like, there’s no way. And when I watched that video it just brought a smile to my face. And also my parents, they called me right away and told me about it. So that’s just going to be special and it’s going to be fun just to be sharing that court with both of them, AD and Bron. Bron is one of the greatest. That’s going to be real special.” 

The Lakers already drawing up plays to get him shots and how excited that makes him

“Yeah, that’s really exciting. You know, at Tennessee I watched a lot of JJ Redick with Coach Barnes and just the way he moves and paces himself and was able to create space. So hearing that is really exciting and it’s going to be real special.” 

How he has been able to improve at each level, from junior college to Northern Colorado to Tennessee

“I would say just playing with a chip on my shoulder. Every single time I touch a basketball or walk into a gym, I always feel like I’ve got something to prove. And it doesn’t matter where I’m at, it’s always going to be there and have that chip on my shoulder for feeling like I’ve been underrated my whole life. So it’s going to be something that I’ll carry with for the rest of my career.”