Los Angeles Lakers, Dalton Knecht and Bronny James donned their new NBA jerseys for the first time on Tuesday.
Welcome to the #LakeShow, Rooks. pic. twitter. com/tphsKPsYpM
First look at Bronny at the Lakers ? Talk pic. twitter. com/UJRITf6XrD
The Lakers selected Knecht with the No. 17 pick after the 6-foot-6 forward helped lead Tennessee to the Elite Eight last spring.
James joined the team at No. after recovering from offseason center surgery to make his college debut with USC last season.
Knecht and James donned their jerseys for the first time after the new Lakers team to enthusiasts at a news convention Tuesday.
James wore No. 6, now retired from the NBA in honor of Bill Russell, for the Trojans at USC.
At the press conference, he spoke about the Lakers wearing the number nine in honor of the late rapper Juice WRLD, who wore a tattoo of the number nine.
Juice WRLD told MTV News in 2018 that the number, an inverted 666, represented “taking whatever hell, any bad situation or struggle you’re going through and turning it into something positive” (with Variety’s Thania Garcia).
Bronny explains why he chose the number nine to honor Juice WRLD ? pic. twitter. com/RoCGmO0mPd
Knecht wore No. 3 for the Flyers, but had to switch to No. 4 so he could collide with Lakers star Anthony Davis.
“Then why do Knecht 4?” the former Tennessee star said Tuesday.
Dalton Knecht on moving up to No. 4: “[No. ] 3, AD got it. So why make Knecht 4?” pic. twitter. com/khDGq70g7R
Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times reported that Knecht and James will wear their new numbers for the first time when they debut with the Lakers in the team’s upcoming Summer League games.
Fans can watch Tennessee and Lakers son LeBron James make his NBA debut at the California Classic Summer League in Sacramento from July 6-10 and the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas from July 12-18.