Should the Lakers Keep Former First-Round Pick Dalton Knecht?

The Los Angeles Lakers selected Dalton Knecht with the No. 17 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, pairing him alongside LeBron James with the hopes of landing James his next great shooting specialist.

In Knchet's lone season at Tennessee, he averaged 21.7 points and 4.9 rebounds per game while shooting 39.7 percent from 3-point range, earning AP First Team All-American honors in the process. He emerged as one of college basketball's best shooters, and even developed some juice as an on-ball scorer and finisher, seemingly a perfect skillset to transfer to the NBA.

Knecht carved himself a rotational role early on in his rookie season, averaging 26.4 minutes per game for the month of November. He made the most of his opportunities, scoring at least 20 points four times, including a 37-point explosion against the Utah Jazz.

Knecht was the ideal spot-up floor spacer alongside James and Anthony Davis. His defensive flaws could be hidden by the rest of the athletic roster and Davis' defensive anchoring skills, making for a perfect pairing.

Unfortunately for Knecht, that would be the peak of his usage with the team. He dropped to 21.1 minutes per game in December, and then wouldn't eclipse 20 minutes per game in any of the following months to close the season.

The Lakers sending out Davis in exchange for Luka Doncic was a major component of that, as it became much less justifiable to play Knecht alongside both Doncic and Reaves defensively, given the woes of each member in the trio.

To make things worse, the Lakers attempted to trade Knecht to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Mark Williams. The trade was accepted, but later rescinded after Williams failed to pass his physical, meaning Knecht would return to the Lakers even after being traded.

As previously mentioned, his role would then decrease immensely. Knecht played just four total minutes in the Lakers' round one playoff series against the Timberwolves.

The Lakers elected to keep Knecht throughout the course of the 2025 offseason, leaving his role for the upcoming season up in the air. Judging off the end of last season, Knecht doesn't seem to be slotted for the role he had alongside Davis, meaning he may be better suited as a trade asset.

Players similar to Knecht have excelled alongside Doncic before, however, such as Tim Hardaway Jr. and Reggie Bullock. However, they also had the benefit of solid defensive anchors to protect the paint from the inevitable blow-by's.

If the Lakers were to opt to trade Knecht, Williams would likely be off the market, as the Phoenix Suns acquired him during the 2025 NBA Draft. Still, targeting a true rim-running big in exchange for Knecht is likely a thought circulating the Lakers front office.

At this point, it seems as though Knecht won't be a playoff contributor with how the current roster stands.

The Final Verdict

Although Knecht is a talented shooter and scorer, his playstyle no longer fits the vision of the Lakers contending roster, and is better suited with a different organization.