The Los Angeles Lakers waived their 2024 first-round pick Dalton Knecht on Monday, the team announced. The move came as the Lakers needed to cut their roster from 16 players to 15, the maximum an NBA roster can carry, by Monday's 5 p.m. ET deadline.
Knecht was selected with the No. 17 pick in 2024 after a standout junior season at the University of Tennessee. The 6-foot-6 wing got off to a hot start as a rookie, including a nine-game stretch from mid- to late November in which he averaged 18.9 points on 55.4% shooting and 4.9 rebounds. He struggled to replicate that success afterward.
In February 2025, the Lakers agreed to trade Knecht, Cam Reddish, a 2031 unprotected first-round pick and a 2030 pick swap to the Charlotte Hornets for center Mark Williams, but the deal was rescinded after Williams failed his physical. Knecht finished his rookie season averaging 9.1 points over 78 games. His playing time dropped to 10.2 minutes per game in his second year, when he averaged 4.2 points. In four preseason appearances this month, he averaged 2.8 points on 25% shooting.
The Lakers pursued two-for-one trades to move Knecht and another player to acquire an additional big man, league sources told ESPN, but could not find a deal by Monday's deadline. Coach JJ Redick said the team's changing needs and fit were the main factors. "I think he got better as a player over the last two years," Redick said. "The needs changed, the fit changed. I think he's in a tough spot right now."
Source: ESPN NBA · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing