“Smooth Criminal”: Dalton Knecht steals the spotlight from Anthony Davis and delights fans in the Lakers’ showdown against the Suns

Dalton Knecht is HE! When the former Tennessee star became available to draft at No. 17, Rob Pelinka and his crew couldn’t believe their luck. In fact, the rookie proved in the preseason why everyone expected him to be a lottery pick this year. And if there were any doubts, there won’t be any after tonight as Knecht played his best game yet, eclipsing even Anthony Davis’ impressive performance.

With the Lakers down by three points in the final minutes, it looked like they were headed for another loss. But Knecht had other plans. Despite being blocked by 6-foot-2 Bol Bol, the freshman came up from deep and fired in the shot to send the game into overtime. And he wasn’t finished yet. He took the lead again in overtime, making three-pointers at every point and finishing with 35 points. More importantly, he led his team to a much-needed victory.

Even Anthony Davis, who himself had a double-double with 35 points, was impressed by the rookie’s scoring output. And fans couldn’t contain their excitement and wrote on X: “Dalton Knecht is a smooth criminal who’s out there smoking shit.”

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