The New York Knicks lost again on Friday night.
They’re now 2-4 after the 98-93 defeat at the hands of the Philadelphia 76ers, and the Knicks have looked lifeless for long stretches of this season as their NBA championship hangover continues.
A lot of the roster is the same, which seems like it would help with continuity but also maybe is proving limiting as far as getting the jolt for early regular season games after the exciting run to the title.
One player is particularly new, though, not even having been with the Knicks during the preseason: Dalton Knecht.
Knecht was cut by the Los Angeles Lakers just before the NBA’s roster deadline, and the Knicks ended up being the team that signed him. They brought him aboard on a two-way contract, which means he can play in both the NBA and the G League for different stretches of time.
Given Knecht’s pedigree as a former first-round pick, you’d wonder if the Knicks would try him out on the court to help break them out of their funk.
But so far, Knecht hasn’t played a single minute for the Knicks.
Why Isn’t Dalton Knecht Playing?
The Knicks appear to be letting Knecht adjust to his new team, and they’ve also made it clear they do plan to play him heavy minutes in the G League.
Knecht has said the right things about such an opportunity:
Dalton Knecht thinks playing in Westchester “is going to be great”:
“Learn a new system, learn a new scheme and stuff like that. Just be ready for the new opportunity, I’m excited to start learning from everybody” https://t.co/bebulPJr19
— SNY Knicks (@sny_knicks) October 25, 2026
And the Knicks clearly want to let Knecht improve his game by playing, not watching, which is where the G League can be valuable:
Brown also seemed to indicate that they Dalton Knecht to play as much as possible so the plan initially is to play games in Westchester.
https://t.co/z9IPxandMP
— David Resnick (@dpresnick) October 26, 2026
Still One Question
Just because the Knicks want to get Knecht time in the G League, it doesn’t totally answer why he’s not playing in the NBA even a little bit in the meantime. Wins at this point in the season could matter, and most of the Knicks aren’t playing well.
New York played 10 guys against the 76ers, not an unreasonable number, but teams do often dip a little further into their bench at least for a couple short stints. Knecht could’ve been one of those guys.
But it seems the Knicks first want to see what he looks like at their Westchester affiliate before giving him a real crack at the NBA rotation.
Here’s Why Knicks Aren’t Playing Dalton Knecht Yet