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The Los Angeles Lakers drafted Tennessee star Dalton Knecht with their first pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. LeBron James says he knew it was a selection that would pay dividends for the purple and gold.
To this point, he’s been proven true! On Tuesday, he took a victory lap on that prediction while ragging the haters that have labeled him as a liar.
James has gone viral time and again for supposedly speaking on something after the fact while boasting that he knew it would come to fruition. In the past, he’s been heard claiming to have prior knowledge of Kobe Bryant’s 81-point game, fibbing about listening to Migos before they went mainstream, and getting called out on his love of The Godfather trilogy.
He quieted those critics, at least briefly, after the Lakers‘ win over the Utah Jazz. James shined in the win, notching 26 points and 12 boards, but rookie Dalton Knecht was the story.
The sharpshooter drained nine three-pointers on his way to 37 points. It was his fourth consecutive double-digit scoring night and his second straight with 25 points or more. He’s now broken his previous career-high in three of his last four outings!
LeBron James wasn’t surprised. He saw what Knecht did at the college level on his way to winning SEC Player of the Year honors in 2024. He even spoke on that stardom while the Vols competed in the NCAA Tournament last spring.
LeBron James was praising Dalton Knecht months ago!
— Darren M. Haynes (@DarrenMHaynes) June 27, 2024
After seeing Knecht succeed at the next level, he took a victory lap. He called the 16 teams who passed on the guard idiotic while gloating of his NBA projection.
LeBron James wasn’t lying!
“Same s— I said last year,” he recalled after watching Knecht go off against the Jazz. “Everybody on the internet called me a liar… What am I now?”
@bleacherreport “What am I now?” 🤣 (via jovanbuha/X) #nba #basketball #lebron #lakers #lebronjames ♬ original sound – bleacherreport
“[The Lakers] didn’t find Knecht,” he continued. “The other 16 teams f—ed up! Did anybody watch him [at Tennessee]?!”
@bleacherreport “Did anybody watch him?” 🤣 (via mcten/X) #nba #basketball #lebron #lakers #lebronjames ♬ original sound – bleacherreport
LeBron James wasn’t lying. He has the receipts to back it up! He took a victory lap on Tuesday after seeing his new teammate tie a rookie record on 9-of-12 shooting from beyond the arc. He’s rejecting the ‘liar’ label, and this time, no one can claim otherwise.