Dalton Knecht's Draft Slide a Big Win for Lakers, LeBron James amid NBA Rumors

The odds weren't great for the Los Angeles Lakers to find an NBA-ready contributor with the No. 17 pick of the 2024 draft.

The basketball gods seemingly made it happen anyway, due in no small part to a big assist from rival front offices who were fixated on age and the theoretical upside attached to it.

Tennessee sharpshooter Dalton Knecht, who was a lottery fixture throughout mock-draft season and often cracked its upper half on those projections, improbably slipped all the way to No. 17 on Wednesday night. It was so stunning to see that it made observers wonder whether medical examinations, interviews or anything else on the predraft circuit had uncovered some kind of red flag that convinced clubs to stay away.

Incredibly, though, this was reportedly all about a number: 23, as in the number of trips Knecht has taken around the sun.

"A half-dozen NBA executives told ESPN that it was Knecht's age—he turned 23 on April 19—and not concerns about his medicals or other reasons that primarily caused his slide," ESPN's Jonathan Givony reported. "His workouts and interviews were excellent, some of those same executives concerned."

This feels like the kind of decision that you don't need the benefit of hindsight to second-guess. The Lakers won't be complaining, though, because Knecht could be a dream get.

There are too many layers to Knecht's game to label him as a shooting specialist. Threes didn't power him alone to averaging 21.7 points and earning SEC Player of the Year honors this past season. He has the handles to free himself, the vision and feel to run pick-and-rolls, the processing skills to spot open teammates and the athleticism to finish at the rim.

And yet, if all Knecht had in his bag was that fiery outside shot, this might still be a home-run selection given how badly the Lakers needed to expand their range.

A properly spaced offense featuring LeBron James and Anthony Davis is virtually impossible to stop. The Lakers lacked the shooting volume to pull defenses out to the perimeter (24th in long-range makes), though, so this attack actually ended up with a perfectly average 15th-place finish in offensive efficiency, per NBA.com.

New Lakers coach JJ Redick has stressed the importance of improving the spacing and not surprisingly "is a huge fan of this pick," per ESPN's Jonathan Givony.

Assuming James stays put, the Lakers will find themselves in an extreme win-right-now window. Few rookies would've had a chance to actually help with that.

Knecht, though, might be the most NBA-ready prospect in this class. If nothing else, his three-point touch and off-ball movement will play right away. And if he has enough in his off-the-dribble bag, the coaching staff should free him to attack that way, too.

Barring perhaps a trade for an established elite, it's hard to imagine a more productive first night of the draft for the Lakers.

"None of us thought he'd be there. It's crazy," a team source told Givony. "The most ready guy in the draft, ready to play right away."

If the Lakers were entertaining the idea of chasing a third star, selecting Knecht shouldn't call that off.

And yet, L.A. only has so many assets to throw around. It can field a formidable—though hardly league-best—trade offer built around multiple first-round picks, plug-and-play 20-somethings like Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura and young sweeteners like last year's first-round pick Jalen Hood-Schifino.

That's a decent package, but getting a really good player might command most, if not all, of it. And getting a great one would bleed the asset collection dry.

The Lakers need to maximize the value of every move they make this summer. Even if James opts to run it back with Davis and Co., this supporting cast needs strengthening. This is hard to do, but the front office might need a perfect offseason to make championship contention a realistic aim.

Nabbing Knecht at No. 17 and scoring the draft's biggest steal was a great start. The Lakers can thank all of the age-obsessed teams selecting in front of them for that.