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Readers rate Dalton Knecht. Who was Tennessee basketball’s best all-around player? | Adams

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Readers rate Dalton Knecht. Who was Tennessee basketball’s best all-around player? | Adams


You needed to see only a few games of Dalton Knecht to figure out the Northern Colorado transfer is one of Tennessee’s all-time best basketball players. In fact, he might be UT’s best all-around offensive player.

I’m not suggesting he’s better than Bernard King, who became a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. But King didn’t have Knecht’s shooting range. Knecht is effective from 3-point range, driving to the basket and from mid-range.

So, I asked my literary contributors for their take on Knecht and if they’re more apt to watch the Vols just because of him.

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Chris writes: Yes, I emailed you earlier this year…that kid is legit and I do watch them more because of him.

My response: His ability to score from anywhere separates him from other UT stars.

Allan Houston was a great outside shooter but didn’t go to the basket as well as Knecht. Dale Ellis was a tremendous player in the early 1980s but was underutilized by coach Don DeVoe. Ellis did little more than post up and score inside – and he was dominant at that – but became one of the NBA’s best 3-point shooters.

Vols Mark writes: Let’s see how Knecht and the team finishes. March Madness typically reflects my emotional state. I hope things will be different with Knecht and team.

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My response: Think how many Final Four runs have been fueled by a great player raising his game when it mattered most. Maybe, Knecht can be that player for the Vols.

James writes: I stand by my statement that Bernard King is not only the best all-around offensive player UT has had, he is the best college basketball player I have ever seen play (although I missed seeing Wilt Chamberlain and Pete Maravich play).

Knecht is up there with Allan Houston and does indeed make the team more fun to watch and follow.  I hope he helps them finally find more success in the NCAA tournament.

My response: Never mind the cliché: “Records are made to be broken.” Two records that won’t be broken: Maravich’s career scoring average in college basketball (44.2 points per game) and Chamberlain’s single-season scoring average in the NBA (50.4 points per game in 1961-62).

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Bill writes: Knecht is really good, but I can’t help but remember Jimmy England (before your time). The 3-point shot wasn’t available then, but he would have been great at it.

My response: I wasn’t in Knoxville when England played but I remember him. He wasn’t just an outstanding shooter. Coach Ray Mears always assigned him to defend the best opposing guard.

Vols Mark writes: I like Dalton a lot. I hope he is successful and makes it big in the NBA, too bad he will never get to play in a Final Four, but since I have only seen him play for about 3 minutes total, I could be a homer. It is baseball season, right?

ADAMS: College athletes are getting paid. Fans respond to how that affects their outlook

My response: Yes, you could be a homer. And yes, Tennessee Vols baseball has been under way for a month.

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But because of Knecht, Tennessee’s basketball season should last longer than usual.

John Adams is a senior columnist. He may be reached at 865-342-6284 or john.adams@knoxnews.com. Follow him at: twitter.com/johnadamskns.





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Flag Day: East Tennessee couple builds wooden American flags by hand

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Flag Day: East Tennessee couple builds wooden American flags by hand


SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. — Dennis and LaNelle Fawver don’t wave a fabric flag. They build them by hand out of wood.

Six years ago, the couple made their very first wooden American flag — not to sell, but to give to Dennis’s younger brother, who had just been diagnosed with stage four cancer.

“So, we were in the middle of making our very first one when we got a call that my younger brother had stage four cancer and he was about to pass,” Dennis Fawver said.

They finished that flag, put his name on it and a cancer awareness ribbon and took it back to him for a surprise.

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“As soon as we gave it to him, you know, he just smiled and got bright and seemed happy,” Dennis Fawver said.

His brother, Randy Behrends, later passed away. But that moment of joy sparked a business, and Dennis says it still drives every flag he makes.

“It just shows patriotic. I mean, just red, white, and blue,” Dennis Fawver said.

The Fawvers make flags for every branch of the military, law enforcement, medical workers, corrections officers and even fully custom flags with names and sayings.

For LaNelle, a former nurse, the reward is different — it’s the moment someone unwraps one.

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“I just like seeing people’s faces when they get them. We make a lot of birthday presents, a lot of anniversaries, Father’s Day presents. That’s a biggie for us. And to see the dads and the reactions on their faces when they see it, that’s the best part. I enjoy making them happy when they see. They get something that means something to them,” LaNelle Fawver said.

That joy — the same joy his brother showed — is what keeps Dennis going.

“So that kind of inspired us like, well, if he liked it that much, you know, and other people commented. So we just started making them and would give them away to friends and family,” Dennis Fawver said.

The Fawvers sell their wooden flags at the Great Smoky Mountains Flea Market and online.

Copyright 2026 WVLT. All rights reserved.

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Tennessee Football Hosted SEC Cornerback Commit on Official Visit This Weekend | Rocky Top Insider

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Tennessee Football Hosted SEC Cornerback Commit on Official Visit This Weekend | Rocky Top Insider


(Photo via Ryan Sylvia | RTI)

Tennessee football is continuing to make pushes for top targets on its board despite prospects’ commitment status. On Saturday, the Vols flipped Alabama commit Kenneth Simon II to join the 2027 class. On Sunday, Dayon Cooper decommitted from Florida State after his official visit to see the Vols.

UT has its eyes set on another currently committed target, as well. Mississippi State commit Brandon Allen Jr. just completed his official visit to Knoxville this past weekend, according to his Instagram story.

Allen ranks as a three-star recruit, according to 247 Composite. He is the No. 627 recruit in the nation, No. 65 cornerback and No. 76 player from the state of Georgia. He plays for Westlake High School in Atlanta. That’s the same school that current UT receiver Travis Smith Jr. played for.

More From RTI: Five-Star Recruiting Target Took Official Visit to Tennessee Football This Weeekend

Tennessee isn’t the only team trying to flip Allen, though. According to 247, along with the Vols and Mississippi State, Allen is also taking official visits to South Carolina, Virginia Tech, Vanderbilt and Georgia Tech. Ironically, UT will face all of those teams, except the Hokies and MSU, next season on its 2026 schedule, with each being played on the road.

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Tennessee is a bit late to join the recruitment of Allen, but it could make a big enough impact to reel him in. UT offered him on May 7 of this year. This came from new cornerbacks coach, Derek Jones, who was hired to join the staff of newly hired Vols defensive coordinator Jim Knowles this offseason.

Tennessee currently holds 15 commitments in the 2027 class and sits outside the top 25 nationally in both 247 and Rivals rankings. However, with official visits continuing to be held, the Vols are putting themself in a position to bolster the group and climb the rankings.



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Indiana man found after going missing in Nashville

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Indiana man found after going missing in Nashville


NASHVILLE, Tenn. — An Indiana man who traveled to Tennessee for the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival has been found after he was reported missing for over 48 hours.

The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department previously issued a statement asking for the public’s assistance in locating 28-year-old Trevor Lines.

28-year-old Trvor Lines, provided by MNPD

Lines reportedly left a short-term rental on Douglas Avenue, where he was staying with friends early Thursday and never returned.

Lines’ friends told law enforcement that they left around 5 a.m. to search for someone’s phone, when they returned within an hour, Lines and his vehicle were gone. His phone and medication were left inside the residence.

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His 2016 Lexus with a Purdue University plate was picked up by license plate readers east of Nashville in Mt. Juliet around 7:30 a.m. on Friday and later at 4:30 p.m. in Goodlettsville, which is north of Nashville. Although Nashville does not use LPRs.

Lines had reportedly been visiting Tennessee for the Bonnaroo festival in Coffee County. Nashville police have alerted the Tennessee Highway Patrol and Coffee County authorities to be on the lookout for Lines.

Lines’ older brother, Kyle Smith, told FOX59/CBS4’s sister station, WKRN, he’s worried. Lines is reportedly from the northern part of Indiana, so he’s unfamiliar with Middle Tennessee.

“We’re hoping that maybe he ended up in a local hospital somewhere… The doubts are definitely creeping in, and it feels more and more likely that something bad has happened,” Smith said.

However, shortly before 8:15 p.m. on Saturday, the MNPD announced Lines was discovered in his car outside the Goodlettsville Skate Center, adding that he’s being reunited with his family.

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No additional details have been made available at this time regarding the circumstances surrounding Lines’ disappearance or his discovery.



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