Before LeBron James was confirmed to miss some major time with a sciatica injury, it was unclear whether Dalton Knecht would have an opportunity to get rotational minutes to start the new season. Now, it is difficult to not envision the Los Angeles Lakers sophomore having his shot.
This will be the chance Knecht was in desperate need of. A poor stretch of play and major question marks about his defense made it challenging to believe JJ Redick would give him a real shot during a season in which the Lakers want to be building championship habits.
Knecht would have been around the 11th man in the rotation for the Lakers before James went down. With less competition in front of him, the Lakers sharpshooter must seize the moment. This was something Lakers beat writer Dan Woike did not hesitate to highlight in his appearance on The Zach Lowe Show.
Woike said, "There's some hope. ... It's really hard to play yourself into value as the 11th guy in a rotation. ... They're not full health. He will get an opportunity to play. ... It's only going to get better with reps. The only pathway for him is a lot of time on the court, a lot of mistakes, and a lot of learning."
LeBron James injury opens the door for Dalton Knecht to make his Lakers case
With no James, Luka Doncic, or Marcus Smart available on Sunday against the Golden State Warriors, Knecht found himself in largely unfamiliar territory during preseason action: the starting lineup. As a rookie, he only started 16 games. The second-year scorer had a solid outing offensively.
Knecht scored the second most points for the Lakers, dropping 16. The 24-year-old shot 4-of-9 from the field, 6-of-8 from the free throw line, and 2-of-5 from beyond the arc.
The added minutes and responsibility translated to his best game of the preseason on offense. There is an important thing to keep in mind with Knecht's scoring punch, though.
There is a lot more comfort for him serving as an overall scorer than there is as a off-ball sharpshooter. Despite that, given his role and standing on the team, the Lakers will be asking for much more of the latter.
JJ Redick says Dalton Knecht has had the best offensive training camp out of any Lakers player - they track the data and he’s scored 42 points more than any other teammate in live play and at about a 60% shooting clip. But Redick says Knecht’s ceiling will be up to his defense.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) October 13, 2025
Whether it be true, or an attempt to boost the confidence of Knecht, Redick sang the praises of his bench scorer mightily when speaking with Dave McMenamin. The Lakers head coach also stated the obvious about his defense.
For someone who came out of college so late, one would have predicted Knecht to be more NBA-ready with his basketball IQ. Those lapses have cost him both offensively and defensively.
At the very least, Knecht must understand the following: this stretch without James is his time to prove himself. If he does not make the most of it, his Lakers future will be bleak.