Sports
Lakers waive former first-round pick Dalton Knecht
Los Angeles released the 2024 No. 17 draft pick Monday while finalizing its roster for the regular season.
The Lakers waived Dalton Knecht to reduce their standard roster from 16 players to the NBA maximum of 15 before the league deadline. Knecht had played two seasons in Los Angeles after being selected in the first round out of Tennessee.
Player: Dalton Knecht
Drafted: No. 17 overall in 2024
2025–26 average: 4.2 points in 10.2 minutes per game
Reason for move: Final 15-player roster cutdown
A diminished role before opening night
The Los Angeles Times reported that Knecht had fallen out of the regular rotation and played only 14 combined minutes in the Lakers’ final two preseason games. He had averaged 9.1 points as a rookie before his production fell to 4.2 points over 54 games last season.
The move came before Los Angeles opens the regular season at home against Golden State on Wednesday.
Original local reporting: Read the Los Angeles Times report →
Additional verification: Read Reuters → · Read NBA.com →