It didn’t take a minute for Dalton Knecht to remind the world what he’s capable of. Of course, the Lakers’ fans have already begun to contemplate. The promising forward delivered an efficient Knicks debut against the Chicago Bulls, giving fans in Southern California another reason to question why the franchise moved on from him.
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Mike Brown’s post-game assessment only added to the frustration.
“He’s a scorer. Not just a shooter. A lot of people think he’s a shooter because he’s white. I mean, I said it for you. I hope I don’t get in trouble. But I mean, he can go get it. He can shoot from range. He’s got a medium game; he can get to the rim; he can pass; he’s got to work defensively, and I thought tonight he tried to play within himself and contributed the best way he could,” Brown said at the presser after the Knicks crushed the Bulls with a 135-105 win.
Knicks’ coach revealed the misconception. He addressed how people evaluate the young forward. He is a bit more than a catch-and-shoot guy. Something that he may have been overlooked for.
He finished with 10 points and 7 rebounds in 16 minutes. He made four of six field-goal attempts, including two three-pointers, and provided an offensive spark off the bench.
After all, he was ready for the opportunity, right from the get-go.
When reporters asked if the sudden opportunity surprised him, Knecht said, “No, I wasn’t surprised. I just came in, ready to go. The coaches said, ‘You’re active’ – that just means be ready.”
Brown explained that Knecht’s appearance came down to instinct.
“He’s on my quote-unquote minute sheet. He’s down for zero minutes, you know, and it’s just a gut feel to throw him in at the end of that first half,” Brown said.
That assessment quickly brought the Lakers back into the conversation.
The Lakers waived Knecht ahead of the season to meet the NBA’s 15-player roster limit. It ended his time with the team that selected him 17th overall in 2024.
Meanwhile, his Knicks debut gave Lakers fans a fresh performance to compare with the limited opportunities he received in his final season in Los Angeles.
Lakers Fans Regret Losing Dalton Knecht After Knicks Debut
One fan felt Knecht’s performance reflected how he had been treated in Los Angeles: “Yep, just like I thought. Bro hated what Lakers did to him smh.”
The reaction speaks to the breakdown of his tenure with the Lakers. Knecht averaged 4.2 points in 10.2 minutes across 54 appearances last season, a significant drop from the 9.1 points he averaged as a rookie. His role had diminished, and the Lakers ultimately chose to waive him rather than find another roster solution.
Another fan questioned the franchise’s decision to retain Bronny James, saying, “Can’t believe Lakers held him back all these years and picked Bronny over him.”
The comparison is understandable from a roster perspective. But the two players were not competing for identical roles. Knecht was a first-round pick expected to develop into a rotation scorer, while Bronny remained a developmental guard.
Still, seeing Knecht contribute immediately with the Knicks made the Lakers’ decision harder for some supporters to accept.
The frustration with the coaching staff was even more direct in another reaction: “J Reddick ruined him. Lakers actually kept Bronny James instead of Knecht. Pathetic.”
Knecht’s reduced role under JJ Redick is part of the argument. He averaged only 10.2 minutes last season, and his opportunities to build on the promise of his rookie campaign became increasingly limited.
That does not establish that coaching alone caused his decline. But it explains why some fans believe the Lakers failed to get the best out of him.
This fan offered a blunt assessment of the roster choice: “We kept that bum Bronny, who can’t even inbound the ball, instead of him.”
The comment refers to Bronny’s late-game inbound turnover against Toronto a few days ago. The mistake came with the Lakers leading by 15, but Toronto cut the margin to five before the Lakers restored control. Bronny finished with zero points and a minus-11 rating in two minutes.
It was one difficult sequence, but it gave critics fresh material.
Another reaction took a sarcastic tone: “Wish Bronny could get a fresh start too.”
By fresh start, this fan meant that the Lakers let Bronny go from the roster and he finds a fresh start elsewhere.
Knecht still has defensive work to do before earning a consistent role in New York, as Brown acknowledged. But his first outing gave the Knicks a useful scoring option and left Lakers fans revisiting a roster decision they already question.