LOS ANGELES – With seven players out on the injury report, Monday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers presented an opportunity for some of the seldom-used players on the Los Angeles Lakers’ roster to step up. One of those players in particular was Dalton Knecht, the Lakers’ first round draft pick from 2024, and a player whom head coach JJ Redick has not lost confidence in.
Against the Blazers, Dalton Knecht came off the Lakers bench to finish with a season-high 16 points in 25 minutes. Following the game, JJ Redick explained how this game could be something for Knecht to build on as the season progresses.
“I think he can build off this. I mean, it wasn’t a perfect game, but he had a really good stretch there. And it wasn’t just making shots. It was playing with some tenacity, getting out in transition,” Redick said. “I just continue to believe in him as a player, and understand that it’s going to be a process with him. And he understands that, I talk about that all the time. I have a very high belief in him.”
Knecht may not have shot the ball very efficiently against the Blazers (5-of-13 from the field, 2-of-8 from three-point range), but he provided a spark with the Lakers extremely short-handed on the second night of a back-to-back.
The No. 17 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, Knecht’s rookie season with the Lakers was anything but smooth. He started off the year as an integral part of the rotation, dropping his career-high of 37 points in only his 14th NBA game.
But Knecht was traded to the Charlotte Hornets at the trade deadline, only to have the deal rescinded and him winding up back on the Lakers’ roster. After the deadline fiasco, he was never really able to find a consistent rhythm again.
During NBA Summer League, he struggled a bit, causing concern among Lakers fans. But during Media Day, Redick suggested that Knecht’s summer league struggles were largely in part due to his intense workout routine following the Lakers’ playoff elimination by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
As a rookie, Knecht appeared in 78 games, including 16 starts, at a little over 19 minutes per game. He averaged 9.1 points and 2.8 rebounds with splits of 46.1 percent shooting from the field, 37.6 percent shooting from the three-point line and 76.2 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
While the 2025-26 season is still young, Knecht has been out of the rotation, save for the Blazers game when he was needed. With the Lakers hopeful for reinforcements during their upcoming road trip, it will be interesting to see if the Blazers game has an effect on his playing time.
