Dalton Knecht: I want to be the best player in the league

Lakers first-round draft pick Dalton Knecht appears to have set the bar very high for himself.

When one is embarking on a career, whether it is as an NBA player or something considered a “normal” career, setting lofty goals is important. Doing so gives someone a real sense of purpose and motivation and can serve as the impetus for establishing and entrenching winning habits and a winning mentality.

Normally, NBA rookies are simply looking to prove to themselves and others that they belong in the league. Some are looking to become stars. But a select handful have their sights set higher than that.

Dalton Knecht was the No. 17 pick in this year’s draft by the Los Angeles Lakers. Many expected him to be a top-10 pick and have called him arguably the most NBA-ready player in this year’s rookie class, which has led many to believe the Lakers got a big steal.

He sat out the Lakers’ summer league game on Wednesday as a purely precautionary measure, but there doesn’t seem to be anything precautionary about his mentality. When asked by ESPN’s Jorge Sedano where he wants to be 10 years from now, Knecht didn’t hold back.

He said he wants “to be the best player in the league” and to “get some championships.”

That has to be music to the ears of the Lakers and their fans. This is a franchise that is desperately trying to return to title contender status, even though it hasn’t brought in any outside players this summer, other than Knecht and second-round draft pick Bronny James.

Knecht wasn’t just a sharpshooter deluxe at the University of Tennessee. The 6-foot-5 wing also showed some ability to attack the paint off the dribble, both in transition and in the halfcourt, and he also has a robust 39-inch vertical leap and a 6-foot-9 wingspan.

Given how lackluster this year’s rookie class appears to be, perhaps Knecht has a real shot of at least being the best player to emerge from it.