The more these October days go by, the louder the chatter about Dalton Knecht’s Los Angeles Lakers future has gotten.
Knecht, 25, hit a wall last season after a relatively promising rookie year. Knecht fell out of head coach JJ Redick’s rotation as the former first round pick watched his draftmate, Bronny James, piece together strong performances and even get some burn in the playoffs.
It feels like Knecht’s clock in Los Angeles is ticking, with preseason being his last chance to prove he belongs in the Lakers rotation. L.A. has until the end of the month to make a decision on Knecht’s team-option for the 2027-28 season.
Knecht’s Lakers Future Hanging On By a Thread
The Lakers have 16 players on their roster, one more than the NBA permits. That means someone will either get waived or a trade gets done. If it comes down to the first option, that isn’t the most favorable outcome for Knecht, who stands out as the likely candidate to be waived if the Lakers are unable to execute a consolidation trade. According to The Athletic’s Dan Woike, it is now or never for Knecht in Los Angeles.
“A prime target, 2024 first-round pick Dalton Knecht, has some really big opportunities in front of him, whether to play himself into the Lakers’ plans or into another team’s,” Woike wrote. “The scoring gene isn’t a question, and an open runway (maybe on the second night of a back-to-back at Golden State) could remind people of the things he can do if he’s able to get into rhythm.”
Because the Lakers have until Oct. 31 to pick up or refuse Knecht’s team-option, Knecht might want to give it his all this preseason.
“The bigger questions, at least from the Lakers’ concerns, come down more to execution, defense and physicality. It’s a bit of a tricky spot, because the things Knecht needs to do to impress the Lakers probably are a little different from the ones that would pop more loudly for other evaluators,” Woike wrote. “We’ll get a good sense of where he is and what the Lakers’ coaches think about his place with the team based on how he is used in these first two games.”
Why Knecht Could Get Waived
Lakers reporter Khobi Price of the California Post recently reported that Knecht is viewed as the odd man out.
“Until Thursday, Knecht wasn’t mentioned — directly or indirectly — by (head coach JJ) Redick or president of basketball operations/general manager Rob Pelinka during any of their media availabilities,” Price wrote last week. “Other wing players such as free agent additions Quentin Grimes, Matisse Thybulle, Ziaire Williams, second-year forward Adou Thiero or rookie wing Cameron Carr had gotten significantly more attention as discussion points. Not a good sign for Knecht, whom multiple rival executives expect to be the odd man out as the Lakers look to trim their roster from 16 players on standard NBA deals to the league maximum of 15.”
Knecht, for his part, has shown that he is willing to fight for his Lakers future. Redick recently expressed that the former Tennessee University star “has worked his butt off all offseason” and is hungry to earn a spot in the rotation.”
Preseason will show just how hard Knecht worked over the summer and how determined he is to remain a Laker.
Dalton Knecht Gets Major Lakers Future Update After New Report From Insider