Wander into Pratt Pavilion while Tennessee basketball is practicing and there’s a strong chance you’ll watch super senior Dalton Knecht and junior Jahmai Mashack going at it one-on-one during a drill.
One rep, Knecht makes a left-handed layup with Mashack draped on his right hip. The next Mashack meets Knecht at the basket and blocks his shot. Later, Knecht drills a contested triple on the left wing that leaves assistant coach Gregg Polinsky providing Mashack the truthful solace that “not many people are going to be able to make a shot like that over you.”
“At this point, it’s just something we see pretty much every day,” senior guard Santiago Vescovi said. “We do that one-on-one drill and it’s actually been really fun to look at them both go at it. … You have Jahmai who we’d say is the best perimeter defender in the country and DK who we’d say is the best offensive perimeter (player) in the country go(ing) at each other. It’s just fun to watch.”
Mashack and Knecht going at it has become the must watch matchup at Tennessee basketball practice. Their early offseason one-on-one games were the first sign that Knecht was capable of breaking out as one of the nation’s best scorers.
Why Rod Clark Was ‘Nervous’ About A One-on-One Game During Knecht’s Visit
It didn’t take Knecht long to start getting shots up when he came to Tennessee for his official visit in mid April. The first game of ones broke out between the Northern Colorado transfer and Mashack shortly after.
The matchup gave Tennessee assistant coach Rod Clark, the Vols’ lead recruiter for Knecht, some pause.
“They were playing one-on-one on (Knecht’s) visit a little bit, which at first I was kind of nervous of,” Clark said. “I thought it was going to scare him off and he wouldn’t come here because when (Ma)Shack plays one-on-one, he’s not like playing around. He’s being serious.”
There was a good reason for the concern. After playing sparingly as a freshman, Mashack broke out as one of the SEC’s best perimeter defenders during his sophomore season. His offensive game was an unfinished product, but Mashack became one of Tennessee’s most valuable players by the way he could take an opposing star guard out of the game.
Tennessee held SEC Player of the Year Brandon Miller under his season-average with 15 points last season. Mashack spent most the night chasing Miller around and the Alabama star scored just four points while the 6-foot-4 guard was defending him.
Knecht has a similar build and skill set to Miller and Mashack was going to attack the one-on-one game with the same intensity that he attacked the matchup against top-ranked Alabama.
“I take one-on-ones very seriously,” Mashack said. “It’s not just a play-around thing.”
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How Mashack Knew Knecht Would Choose Tennessee
He may not have known it, but the one-on-one game was a test for Knecht.
“I do it with a lot of guys, actually. Especially if I’m the main one on the visit,” Mashack said. “For me, it’s just to gauge how they’re going to be as a teammate. If I want a guy on my team, I want to know if he’s going to compete no matter what. Whether we’re at the park, whether we’re in the gym— it does not matter. … These are guys I’m going to battle with so I have to know they have my back.”
A matchup that originally made Clark nervous proved to be one of the best things that could have happened on Knecht’s visit. The transfer’s competitive nature and offensive skill set immediately earned him the respect of one of Tennessee’s most respected players.
When Knecht left Knoxville to return to Colorado, Mashack knew Tennessee needed him and he was confident that they’d land him. He even called his mom to tell her as much.
“It was kind of the same things that brought me here,” Mashack said. “The basketball part, the essence, the love of basketball here and how deeply rooted it is. … I just want to be the best player I can be, so knowing that and talking to DK about that and kind of having those same similarities I could tell that he was going to come here no matter what. Because he loves the game and wants to get better and he knows he can get better here.”
The game of ones helped the pair hit it off during the visit and Mashack quickly reached out afterwards to help recruit the scoring sensation. Less than a week later, Mashack’s suspicion proved correct when Knecht committed to Tennessee. Many more one-on-one games ensued.
“When I committed he always said let’s go get in the gym and play some ones and stuff,” Knecht said. “We play ones every single day and just love competing against each other and like playing on and off the court.
How The Game Was A Sign Of Knecht’s Future Success
The Fontana, California and Thornton, Colorado natives battling it out at Pratt Pavilion in April was an early sign of what Knecht could do for Tennessee basketball.
When he arrived on campus for good a month later, more games between the pair ensued and more people around the Tennessee program became confident that Knecht was the scorer that the Vols had been missing.
“We always get after it in practice and Jahmai, he’s one of the top defenders in the country if not the top defender in the country,” junior point guard Zakai Zeigler said. “Jahmai is getting after him and they were going back-and-forth. He (Dalton) wasn’t making every shot but he was making some tough shots and that’s when I knew and we all knew that he’s going to be something else. From the start we knew.”
Knecht proved everyone correct early in his super senior season. He scored 28 points in an exhibition win over Michigan State, 24 points in a win at Wisconsin and 39 points in a loss at North Carolina during the first month of the season.
But an ankle injury late in the North Carolina game and opponents prioritizing defending Knecht led to a December slide in production.
Ninth-year Tennessee coach Rick Barnes credits the consistent challenge Knecht faced in practice every day as part of the reason Knecht got back on track.
“I think he owes it all to Jahmai (for) guarding him every day in practice and going at it, and these other guys knowing how he’s being played,” Barnes said.
Knecht broke out of the slump in a major way. He scored 25-plus points in six straight games. He’s averaging 26.9 points per game in conference play, is the favorite to win SEC Player of the Year and a near lock to be a Naismith Player of the Year Finalist.
“He’s one of the greatest players, offensively, that we’ve seen so far,” Vescovi said.
It’s hard to disagree with Vescovi’s assessment. Knecht’s ability to score some highly contested April baskets against Mashack was the first sign.
One Response
Fabulous “insider” look article, Ryan. Nice job.