Dalton Knecht, Tennessee Guard

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Minimum monthly payment, down payment, tax and delivery may be required. See store for details. We continue. This is that Gelb Show Coast to Coast on CBS Sports Radio. Now joining us as we get set for March Madness is one of the best individual stories of the NCAA tournament from junior college to northern Colorado. And now his first year at Tennessee, Dalton Connect has been sensational.

He is the SEC player of the year and Tennessee will do battle Thursday evening as a two seed going up against St. Peter's and Dalton Connect is kind enough to join us right now on the Zach Gelb Show on CBS Sports Radio. Dalton, first and foremost, congratulations on all your success. Thanks so much for doing this. And how you been?

Yes, sir, thank you. Thanks for having me. And I've been doing great. Me and the team are excited to go out and put on a show for March. Yeah, how do you kind of describe these emotions right now that no one come Thursday evening when the ball gets thrown up into the air, you're going to be playing in the NCAA tournament for Tennessee? Yeah, it's going to be exciting for me because it's my first ever, you know, March Madness time to play in. So I'm going to take it all in as much as I can. But also I got great teammates around me that's been there and done that, so they're going to kind of tell me what to say, compose and stuff like that. So we're all going to be super excited and all of us are looking forward to it. But you've been able to accomplish individually this year.

You know, a lot of people are familiar with the story now. You know, I kind of set it up when we introduced you. But how do you explain this success that you've been able to have at Tennessee, not just been able to fit with the program, but be the best player in the conference? I would just say it's just hard work. I've been working super hard ever since I got here, as well as like the coaching staff have been there with me, helping me and grow my game. You know, I got a great support guys around me with my teammates. They're great players and great teammates to be around. So it's just real special to, you know, get that award being SC Player of the Year. On the surface, it seems like it's been a pretty easy transition.

How has it been behind the scenes? Was a little bit tougher than the way that you made it look on the court? No, it was super easy ever since I got here. Zaki, he was always asking me to go get some food or hop on the game with him, as well as Josiah and stuff like that. So that everyone, ever since I got here, has been super helpful if I had any questions on the court or off the court. They're always willing to pick up the phone and help me or go get some food or anything.

So ever since I got here, it's real special and I can't thank my teammates enough for making this transition super easy. Dalton, connect here with us right now. We asked super serious questions on this show when you guys were getting food. What's the best meal choice on campus?

Just went through. Where are you guys eating? I mean, we go to Wink Spots all the time, a place called Chicken Sack. So we go there quite a bit.

And Z says that was the best Wink Spot, so I'd have to approve it with him. Blue cheese or ranch? I'm a ranch guy.

Oh, man, I think you were having a perfect year up until that answer. Why do you go ranch over blue cheese? You just never liked blue cheese?

No, never did. And I don't understand why people like blue cheese. Well, it's pretty damn tasty if I may so myself, but we'll agree to disagree there. Dalton connect here with us. Why was Tennessee I know you talked about the relationship you formed right away, but when you were kind of picking where you were going to continue the final year of your college basketball journey, what stood out to you with some of the other options that you had that made Tennessee the best destination for you? I mean, there was a lot of great schools that I was talking to and a lot of, you know, great programs. And I just felt like I felt like Tennessee was just the right place. It felt like the one word I could say that every single time I talk about Tennessee is it's special here.

So that's that's probably the biggest thing that stood out was I could tell the culture here is different. Were you always this confident as the way that it perceives on the court, like to do what you did this year? It's such a unique and special story. Like if I would have told you this offseason, once you selected Tennessee, that you would go on to be the SEC Player of the Year, would that be something that you would expect and you would believe, believe right away? I believe I could get it done, but also at the same time, I knew it would be a lot of hard work. And, you know, you've got to go out and perform every single night.

So I knew it would be super difficult to go get that accomplished. And, you know, it's just a big shout out to my teammates and coaching staff for getting me in those right spots and letting me play how I could be. That's something that they were always on me about is my teammates always wanted me to just play how I play and they'll feed off of it. Talking to Dalton Connect right now, the SEC Player of the Year, I know that you grew a little bit later in life.

But how do you kind of otherwise explain the delay in kind of your rise, while you had to travel through junior college then to another stop before landing at Tennessee? Yeah, I would say the late Grossberg kind of helped me. I was always a point guard. And now I'm a tall guard, a big guard now that could still has a little bit of guard play in him for a point guard. So I think it's it helped me, you know, I get to play more position and I think it overall helped me out at junior college and then Northern Colorado.

What did that really teach you about the game of basketball in those two stops? Dalton, you kind of found myself, you know, because I mean, they're tough and you got to make it out of there with a tough mindset. So definitely helped me out there. And then at Northern Colorado, I developed a postgame and learned about coming off ballstrings and stuff like that.

So those are the two things that really helped me out, especially coming here. Talking to Dalton Connect right now, going back to the SEC tournament. I know it didn't go the way that you guys wanted to you. The number one overall seed you lose in your first game up against Mississippi State. How do you just explain what happened during the SEC tourney? We didn't come up more.

We didn't come out physical enough and we weren't the aggressors. We played a great Mississippi State team and got to give them their props. They beat us twice and we know we don't want this feeling to ever happen again, especially during the big tournament. So we know it lit a fire under us that we're going to be super asked to go out there and go put on a show for our fans and make a run in March. You guys have been such a positive story for most of this season.

You've been getting a lot of praise. Now, some negativity after what happened in the SEC tournament comes your way as you were just describing the feeling that was going through your body when it happened. Why can this group push it aside so quickly and go make a run here for Tennessee in March Madness? Yeah, we know we're one of the best teams in the nation and we're fine with people, you know, kind of hating on us after the SEC tourney. So we're fine with all that and we're just going to embrace it. And we're going to go put on a show for our fans and like I said, just go out and make a deep run.

People talk about your story, Delta Connect, then they talk about the team's success. And now people are wondering, can this group get to Tennessee's first ever Final Four? Do you feel that pressure? Do you feel that conversation that's kind of been deriving over the last month, month and a half regarding your squad? I don't think there's no pressure for us.

I don't think any, there's no pressure for any of us to make the Final Four. We're all just super excited. We're going to embrace it. And we know we're one of the best teams in the nation. So now's just the time just to go put it on, put on the show. We know we got tons of hard work to do. And that starts off with the first game and then just go from there.

Wrapping up, Adult Connect, who joins us right now for a few more moments on the Zach Gelb show. I've seen that you've been projected to be a top 15 pick in this upcoming NBA draft. When you start to hear that buzz, knowing all the hard work and the growth in your journey, just how do you kind of process that when you start to see some of those pre-draft projections? Yeah, I mean, it's real cool to see because it's been a, out of a dream of mine is being drafted in the NBA and, you know, being a top 15 pick is something very few could say that they've done. But also at the same time, I know I'm not really focused on that, nor do I want to care about that right now, just because I know we got one last run in this team.

And I love the University of Tennessee and want to go put on a show for our fans and put on a show for the school. A lot of people parachute into the sport this time of the year because everyone starts to fill out one of these brackets. So if people don't know your story, they're going to know your story by the end of this weekend, and hopefully it turns into a long run for the program where they get to highlight it even more. But if people haven't seen the SEC Player of the Year play this season in Dalton Connect, what have they been missing out on and how do you kind of describe your game? I would say to describe my game is just fun to watch. And also that's the team thing is we're real fun to watch.

Anything can happen. We got tons of great players that can go out and put on crazy highlights, and we're going to be a very scary team to play against in March. You've played for a bunch of different coaches. What makes Rick Barnes so special with what you guys have been able to accomplish this past year?

I mean, Coach Barnes, he's all the same coach. He's been to March Madness plenty of times and knows how to get wins. So we know we just got to lock in on him on the scouting reports and stuff and go out and just execute and, you know, just listen to him because he's been there and done that. So we just got to go out there and put on a performance. Last thing I'll ask you, you don't seem rattled by the big moment.

You don't seem like success has really affected you. How have you been able to kind of block out all the extra attention that you received this year with now really being in the spotlight and being one of the more talked about stories and players in all college basketball? Yeah, it's definitely something real cool, but also, you know, I just kind of had a great support cast around me to, you know, make sure that I'm good and stuff like that. So it's kind of just, you know, just finally showing the world what I could go do and just, you know, living in that moment, something real special you could do.

You know, I know you probably pinch yourself a little bit in the moment and you probably won't be able to process everything until whenever this run does end. But for your family, just wondering, you talk about the support system behind the scenes just to see all your success this year, what have been some of your conversations like with your family as they deal with this success as well? Yeah, me and my parents, we know we've been ready to go play in March and we're super excited to go. They're going to come out there in Charlotte.

So they're real excited. And we just can't wait just to go. You know, we've been watching March Madness for tons of years.

Now it's time to go play in it and go via that type of an atmosphere. Has it hit you yet? Just wondering, like you guys knew you were going to the NCAA tournament. I know the SEC tourney didn't go your way. But has it hit you that come Thursday, man, this is for real. This is do or die time in March Madness and everything you grew up watching as a kid.

Now you get to write your own chapter of history in the tourney. Yeah, no doubt. I mean, it's for sure kind of scary going out there. You know, I could possibly play my last game for Tennessee Thursday, but also, you know, we're all super excited. And we've been saying since we all got together as a group that we wanted to go make a special run in March. And, you know, we're super excited to go out and finally do what we've been working so hard to accomplish. Well, Dalton, hey, your journey and your run this year has been incredible. We're looking forward to more of it.

Thanks so much for doing this safe travels and good luck coming up on Thursday up against St. Peter's. Yes, sir. Thank you.

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