Lakers waive former No. 17 pick Dalton Knecht in final roster cutdown

The Los Angeles Lakers waived guard/forward Dalton Knecht on Monday to reach the NBA’s 15-man standard roster limit ahead of the 5 p.m. ET cutdown deadline, the team announced on Monday afternoon (Reuters). ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported the move (Hoops Rumors).

The Lakers entered Monday carrying 16 players on guaranteed standard contracts, leaving one cut to make. They chose to keep second-year guard Bronny James and Jaden Hardy on the roster instead (Hoops Rumors; NBC Sports).

Los Angeles had tried to trade the 25-year-old before the deadline but could not find a deal, according to NBA insider Marc Stein (theScore). Knecht is now a free agent (NBC Sports).

Knecht, a 6-foot-6 wing, was the No. 17 overall pick in the 2024 NBA draft out of Tennessee, where he was the 2024 SEC Player of the Year and a consensus first-team All-American (Reuters). He averaged 9.1 points and 2.8 rebounds across 78 games (16 starts) as a rookie, but fell out of the rotation last season, averaging 4.2 points and 1.4 rebounds in 10.2 minutes a night over 54 games (one start) while shooting 34.2% from three (Reuters; NBC Sports). He managed 2.8 points on 25% shooting (3 of 12) across four preseason appearances (Reuters).

Knecht was nearly dealt to the Charlotte Hornets at the February 2025 deadline for centre Mark Williams, but the trade was rescinded after Williams’ physical (Hoops Rumors).

Also waived at Monday’s deadline were Milwaukee guard Kevin Porter Jr., who averaged 17.4 points, 7.4 assists and 5.2 rebounds last season, and Memphis guard Walter Clayton Jr., the No. 18 pick in the 2025 draft (NBC Sports).