Lakers waive former 1st-round pick Dalton Knecht ahead of opening night

The Los Angeles Lakers waived guard Dalton Knecht on Monday in their final roster cutdown for the regular season.

Knecht was the Lakers' first-round pick in 2024, and he briefly appeared to be a star in the making early in his rookie season. The 2024 SEC Player of the Year at Tennessee scored 37 points while hitting nine 3-pointers against Utah in November of that year in the highlight of a nine-game stretch in which he averaged 18.9 points per game.

But Knecht never matched that success again, and he never regained significant playing time for the Lakers after he was briefly traded to Charlotte in February 2025. The Lakers sent Knecht, Cam Reddish and draft considerations to the Hornets for center Mark Williams, only to rescind the trade hours later after Williams' physical.

Knecht averaged just 10 minutes per game last season and never earned a regular rotation role.

The decision means the Lakers are keeping guard Bronny James for a third season after his father, NBA all-time scoring leader LeBron James, left in the offseason.

Bronny James appeared in 69 games over his first two seasons with the Lakers, averaging 2.7 points per game.

The Lakers open the regular season at home against the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night.