The Los Angeles Lakers have reportedly been trying to trade Jarred Vanderbilt and Dalton Knecht for the past two years, but to no avail. The two are currently on the outside of the Lakers’ rotation for the upcoming season, but after multiple failed trade efforts, there is a real chance that at least one of them is stuck on the roster for the foreseeable future.
While Knecht is the one name expected to be waived by the Lakers to get to the 15-man roster limit before the season begins, the team previously hoped to get a decent package in return for both him and Vanderbilt.
But now, with just two weeks before the start of the 2026-27 NBA season, Los Angeles failed to find a deal. Though those two have been mentioned as a potential trade package for someone like PJ Washington of the Dallas Mavericks, neither appears to be the type of asset the Lakers need to find a roster upgrade for this year.
Lakers Have Been Trying To Trade Jarred Vanderbilt And Dalton Knecht For A Long Time
Speaking on the latest episode of his show, Lakers reporter Jovan Buha revealed Los Angeles has been trying to trade both Vanderbilt and Knecht for ‘well over a year.’
“This should come as no surprise, in my opinion,” he said. “The Lakers have been trying to trade both of these players going back really almost two seasons.”
“They’ve been shopping these guys for a while, well over a year,” he added. “They were shopping them last deadline. They’ve been shopping them this offseason. They’ve not been able to offload them.”
Vanderbilt fell out of the Lakers’ rotation last season, and his name was previously mentioned in trade rumors to bring in a new forward for the team. His four-year, $48 million contract could have been used in a deal for someone else who could bring a bit more to the table in Los Angeles. However, the $12.4 million he’s owed this season and the $13.2 million player option he has for next season is too heavy a price for other teams to seriously be interested in him as a trade asset.
If Vanderbilt was already on an expiring deal, perhaps finding a trade partner would have been easier, but it doesn’t appear rival teams are interested in taking on his contract for a player who averaged just 4.4 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 17.4 minutes per game last season.
Knecht is in a bit of a different boat, even though he’s also been on the outside of the Lakers’ rotation for a while. The team already tried trading him once for Mark Williams, and reportedly eyed using him in a deal for shooting guard Buddy Hield, according to NBA insider Brett Siegel. Knecht is entering the final guaranteed year of his rookie contract, with a player option for next season. Still, as is the case with Vanderbilt, he doesn’t carry a high enough value for the Lakers to use him in a trade for a significant roster upgrade.
Los Angeles has an impending roster cut to make, and if they can’t trade Knecht or use him and Vanderbilt in a ‘2 for 1’ consolidation trade, it’s going to be the team’s former 2024 first-round pick who is off the roster sometime in the next two weeks.
“Right now, I think (Jaden) Hardy is winning the (final roster spot) competition,” Buha said. “If it really comes down to it, I think Knecht is the clear odd man out, and we’ll see if LA is able to pull off a trade. But if not, I think he’s going to be waived.”
There Is A Realistic Trade Package For The Two Los Angeles Players?
Though Buha reported on the Lakers’ failed Vanderbilt and Knecht trade attempts, he did discuss the idea of Los Angeles using those two and some minor draft assets in a deal for Washington on the Mavericks.
The former Luka Doncic teammate has been previously tabbed as a top trade target for the Lakers, and if they could use any combination of those two guys or a few second-rounders, Buha believes that would be an ideal scenario.
“I mean, sign me up for this in a heartbeat,” Buha said about a trade package like that, which would see Washington or Daniel Gafford arrive in LA. “DK plus Vando, DK plus the three seconds – I would do that for either one of those guys.”
Despite the intrigue of either Washington or Gafford on the Lakers, if Dallas was interested in a trade package like this, they likely would have accepted the offer already. Los Angeles could still offer Vanderbilt and Knecht, but as of now, it doesn’t look like the Mavericks want either back in a move for one of their higher-caliber forwards.
For now, it looks like Vanderbilt and Knecht are in NBA purgatory. The latter is expected to be off the roster very soon, and the same could even be said for the former. If Vanderbilt isn’t getting playing time and is taking up space on the roster, the Lakers could swap him for a second-round pick and cash. It wouldn’t be ideal, but after the failed trade pursuits this summer, it might be the only avenue the front office has left to fix this issue that’s been apparent for a long time now.
Lakers Dealt Brutal Blow On Jarred Vanderbilt, Dalton Knecht Trade Hopes