An NBA scout told LA Lakers reporter Jovan Buha what he saw in Dalton Knecht after a strange rookie season.
Dalton Knecht’s rookie season with the Los Angeles Lakers was a story of two halves. The No. 17 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft didn’t exactly set the world on fire.
Knecht became the Lakers’ breakout star early in the season, peaking in December with a 37-point performance.
However, as the season progressed, Knecht began to struggle, having several inefficient offensive nights and lackluster defensive efforts.
Knecht’s struggles continued into summer league, and he showed no signs of improvement during the Lakers’ preseason. But what do scouts around the NBA think of him?
Los Angeles Lakers reporter Jovan Buha spoke on his podcast about his experience at the Lakers’ preseason game against the Dallas Mavericks in Las Vegas.
He told a story he spoke with an NBA scout who expressed concern about Dalton Knecht’s lack of progress after a disappointing rookie year.
“At the Lakers-Mavericks preseason game last night, I was talking to a scout from another team and he was just talking about Dalton’s struggles.
“From a decision-making standpoint, there hasn’t been much progress there, that’s an area of his game, he just hasn’t found the right moves on either side of the ball.
“Obviously, he’s improved a lot more offensively, but this guy expressed a lot of skepticism.
“This is just one person’s opinion, but I’ve said it before: When you have an outside conversation about Dalton with someone other than the Lakers, it tends to be relatively negative or pessimistic.”
Given Knecht’s strong preseason with the Lakers, there was some hope that Dalton Knecht could turn things around during the Los Angeles Lakers’ preseason games.
However, Knecht failed to make an impression, only showing that his struggles were not unique to last season.
Unless Knecht miraculously regains his early form early in the NBA season, the Los Angeles Lakers may have to accept Knecht’s move in the coming months.
Knecht is a trade negative asset at this point, and Knecht should be used as cap filler in a potential trade before the deadline.