One Shining Weekend
Alex Schwartz
PHOENIX – Thirteen months after finishing outside the top five in All-Big Sky Conference voting, Dalton Knecht returned to the Mountain States region as one of four finalists for the Naismith Trophy, given to national player of the year.
He met Ralph Sampson, mingled with Christian Laettner, received words of praise from Roy Williams and reminisced with T.J. Ford about playing for Rick Barnes.
“To have my name a part of a legendary list is crazy to think because last year no one really knew who I was and coming [from there] to now, everyone kind of knows who I am and it’s quite something special,” Knecht said. “…It’s just a real cool moment.”
After spending the first 22 years of his life, including the first four of his college career, in basketball anonymity, Knecht, after one season at the University of Tennessee, is now in the spotlight.
That is what happens when you average an SEC-best 21.7 points per game for the outright league champions, dropping 35-plus an NCAA-high six times along the way.
It is assuredly what happens when you win SEC Player of the Year and the Julius Erving Award, as well as earn consensus First Team All-America status.
The stats and accolades go on and on, as Knecht wrote his name all over the record books during his lone season on Rocky Top after spending the prior two at Northern Colorado and the two before that at Northeastern (Colo.) Junior College.
Throughout his climb from unknown to superstar, Knecht never made it about himself. He was “just focused on the team,” something anyone around him from November through March would certainly verify. He lived the UT basketball program’s motto of “It’s Not About Me” to its fullest.
This past weekend, though, at the Naismith Awards ceremonies in Phoenix was a time to celebrate Knecht. Even if the humble headliner still would not accept things being solely about him.
“It means a lot,” Knecht said of being a Naismith Trophy finalist. “It’s something super special that not too many people can say they’ve done. I couldn’t do it without my teammates and the coaching staff, as well. And the support of Vol Nation is always special.”
Knecht represented his Tennessee teammates, coaches and fans with class in the Grand Canyon State. He soaked in the experience, joined by his mother, Carrie, and his father, Corey.
North Carolina’s R.J. Davis, Purdue’s Zach Edey and Houston’s Jamal Shead rounded out the group of Naismith Trophy finalists. The trio, all on the college basketball radar for several years, served as Knecht’s peers on the Mount Rushmore of individual talents in 2023-24.
When Edey, the first multiple-time winner since Sampson over 40 years ago, accepted the award Sunday morning at the Phoenix Art Museum, he made mention of Knecht in his speech, courteously noting he had the “displeasure” of facing the gifted wing twice this season.
The trip to Phoenix, however, was not about whether Knecht won the award. Simply being there was an incredible achievement a mere two years after averaging 8.9 points per game at Northern Colorado.
Knecht himself admitted he “probably wouldn’t believe it” that this was possible a year ago. His rise to this level even shocked the person who has been his closest basketball mentor since childhood, his father.
“It’s been a really surprising year [when you consider] where he came from in junior college to Northern Colorado to Tennessee,” Corey said. “I really appreciate all the people in Knoxville for welcoming my son into their community. Also, the coaching staff really helped out his transition, as well as the teammates [who] accepted him and helped him do what he does. He also improved in areas that he needed to improve in.”
Carrie, meanwhile, beamed with pride for three straight days in Phoenix. The joy in seeing her son honored for all efforts was evident.
She is among the select group who knows the many hours Dalton put in to get to this spot in the college basketball landscape. She, of course, has also seen those hours date back much longer than anyone else.
“I think it just kind of came full circle. We saw how hard he worked last summer, through the fall, winter,” Carrie said. “I think seeing the reward for that hard work come together this weekend was just very heartwarming. We couldn’t be more proud of him for everything that he’s accomplished. [To see] everything he has dreamed about since he was a little boy, it’s just been amazing.”
The sentiment of Naismith weekend being a payoff for years of late nights filled with thousands upon thousands of shots was one also expressed by the finalist himself.
It also gave him the opportunity to express gratitude to those who helped get him where he is today, a bona fide SEC legend, a likely first-round pick in the NBA Draft and, on this particular weekend, a finalist for the most prestigious award in his sport.
“Few people know how hard I’ve worked and I’ve had a lot of good friends that came and helped me along the way to get me there, as well as some coaches that taught me the ways and stuff like that,” Dalton remarked. “So, it’s been real cool just to see my hard work pay off, as well as [that of] my parents. They’ve been there the whole entire way and I can’t thank my parents enough for always doing anything that they could do to get me into a gym or just giving back. I love my parents and I can’t thank them enough.”
DK touched down in Phoenix last night to take part in Naismith Awards Weekend
— Tennessee Basketball (@Vol_Hoops) April 6, 2024
he's one of four finalists for the prestigious @NaismithTrophy — given to the national player of the year pic.twitter.com/EtOhtezhlX
While the focus this season was on Dalton, the last five-plus months also changed the lives of his parents.
Carrie and Corey were a constant presence at Tennessee games, both at home on the road this year. They were in the crowd for his amazing highs and his rare lows, witnessing arguably the greatest season in program history firsthand.
The entire Knecht family, hailing from over 1,300 miles away in Thornton, Colo., became a true part of Vol Nation.
“I would say it’s been amazing and surreal. That’s the way I’ve described it the whole season,” Carrie shared. “Everybody in Knoxville has been so welcoming. I’ve made some really great friends there that I will have well beyond the UT days. The community support has been amazing. The coaching staff has just welcomed him with open arms and the players [have done the same, as has] the media and all of the supporting cast.”
Corey added, “Everybody in Knoxville was extremely kind to help us out with anything we ever needed or [with suggesting] places to go out and eat, as simple as that may sound. But … I really appreciate Knoxville and Vol Nation taking in me, my wife and Dalton.”
Over the family’s three days in Arizona, Carrie and Corey saw Dalton’s stardom actually extends well beyond Rocky Top and the SEC.
In rooms filled with college basketball royalty, their son belonged.
And the regnant figures were not merely in attendance with Dalton, but also supporters of the 6-foot-6, 213-pounder’s dynamic game.
“I was kind of saying I was a little starstruck, to be honest. I was like, ‘Oh my gosh,’” Carrie said of the many famous faces at the Naismith ceremonies. “To get pictures with people, to meet them, to have them say they’re fans of Dalton, was just amazing and such an honor to hear that from those people.”
Another element of the festivities in Phoenix was a dedication of a newly-renovated basketball gym at the Watts Family Maryvale YMCA.
Knecht and Davis both participated in the event, which included speeches followed by a youth clinic. So did Danny Manning, the 1988 Naismith Trophy designee, and Randy Livingston, the 1993 Naismith Prep Player of the Year, a duo that combined for 28 years in the NBA.
For Knecht, it was another opportunity to engage with young fans, something he has excelled at all year in Knoxville, Tenn., and on the road. A mild-mannered 22-year-old, he looked like a seasoned professional all year in how he handled community involvement.
Pictures, autographs and conversations, Knecht gave all of them to Vol Nation this season. After nearly every game, he could be found signing his name on basketballs, posters, jerseys and more. A high-five with a young fan in Columbia, Mo., led to an “I’m never washing my hand again” comment from the girl to her mother.
The many hours he spent engaging with Tennessee fans this season helped Dalton feel right at home interacting with the youth of Phoenix in their new neighborhood gym.
“Me and R.J., we went out and gave back to the community because they support us.” Knecht said. “It was just cool to give back and kind of teach the younger generation how to play basketball.”
After the clinic ended, Knecht, as anyone who has seen him this year would expect, patiently signed autographs and took photos for every single child—as well as several doting parents and hard-working YMCA employees—who asked.
Even on a weekend meant to honor his accomplishments, Dalton still gave back to others. Carrie, unsurprisingly, could not hold back a smile for nearly the entire hour-plus event as she watched it transpire.
“I loved that part of it. I think he has kind of like a really special knack for working with kids,” she remarked. “He’s very relatable, I think, as people have learned his story, seeing what hard work and dedication can do for you. Seeing that all come to fruition this weekend and at the event with the kids, it was just so much fun.”
DK is for the children
— Tennessee Basketball (@Vol_Hoops) April 7, 2024
as part of Naismith Awards Weekend, Dalton Knecht met up with aspiring hoopers for a youth clinic at the dedication for a newly-renovated YMCA pic.twitter.com/2C7YZD1je8
The YMCA dedication was the second of three events for the Knechts in Arizona. Their trip also included a welcome dinner Friday night at Mastro’s City Hall, a steakhouse in Scottsdale, and the awards brunch Sunday morning at the aforementioned Phoenix Art Museum.
Dalton described it as a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity. For most people, even the very best college basketball players, it is not even an opportunity at all.
It is exceedingly hard to make the cut, for prominent voters to determine you are one of the four finest players in America. Knecht, though, left no doubt.
While Naismith does not formally announce voting totals, Knecht did win the fan vote with 34.3 percent of the total, over 10 points higher than the second-place finisher.
He was the runner-up for Associated Press National Player of the Year and one of two unanimous First Team All-Americans according to both The Sporting News and CBS Sports.
By nearly any measure, Knecht was one of the two best players in the nation this season, coming closer to national player of the year honors than any Volunteer before him. He, without a doubt, deserved every moment the Atlanta Tipoff Club provided its finalists in Phoenix.
“The last few days have been crazy. You get to go out to a special place and [be around] special people that have been in the history books of college basketball,” Knecht shared, reflecting on the weekend. “You get to go out and meet those guys that you’ve been watching or you hear stories of, as well as the rest of the finalists that I came out here with. So, it’s real cool just to be a part of them and just be a part of history.”
For Knecht, it was a fitting end to a remarkable season, one that has cemented him a Tennessee icon for decades to come, as well as one he cherished from start to finish.
“It’s been the best year of my life,” Knecht said.
It was also, perhaps, the best season ever by a Volunteer. It was one that put him on a figurative stage in Arizona alongside some of the best players and coaches in the sport, not just this season, but all-time.
It was a stage on which Knecht assuredly belonged, but it will not be the final on which he stands. A literal walk across a stage and into the NBA awaits Knecht in under three months, the next steps in his meteoric ascent towards yet another one of his childhood dreams.