No. 5 seed Houston defeated No. 4 seed Los Angeles, 115-96, in the NBA playoffs first round Sunday at Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.
Former Tennessee basketball player Dalton Knecht made his 2026 postseason debut for the Lakers. He totaled eight points and three rebounds in seven minutes. Knecht converted 2-of-3 field goal attempts, 2-of-3 three-point attempts and 2-of-2 free throw attempts.
DeAndre Ayton scored 19 points, while Rui Hachimura totaled 13 points and LeBron James finished with 10 points for Los Angeles. Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic were inactive for the Lakers, who lead the best-of-seven series, 3-1.
Knecht was selected in the first round of the 2024 NBA draft (No. 17 overall) by the Lakers.
He transferred to Tennessee from Northern Colorado and played for the Vols during the 2023-24 season under head coach Rick Barnes.
During his one season at Tennessee, Knecht averaged 21.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. He led the Vols to a SEC regular-season championship and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight for a second time in school history.
Game 5 of the series is slated for 10 p.m. EDT on Wednesday at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California. ESPN will televise the contest.
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This article originally appeared on Vols Wire: Dalton Knecht makes NBA playoff debut for Lakers