The highs and lows Dalton Knecht has gone through over the last six months are more likely to be found in a rom-com than during a rookie season in the NBA.
His honeymoon phase featured a 37-point performance in November and a handful of starts but was followed by a rough patch during January, which ultimately led to a divorce with Los Angeles when he was shipped to Charlotte in exchange for Mark Williams.
His response since the forced reconciliation has been nothing short of spectacular.
Knecht has said the right things in front of the media and, most importantly, backed up his talk with an even more impressive walk.
On Monday night against the Spurs, Knecht led the bench in scoring with 13 points, helping the Lakers earn their second straight win.
Even in recent games that haven’t gone in L.A.’s way, Knecht has given the team a fighting chance. Against the Nuggets, he started and played 37 minutes, scoring 32 points. The result didn’t go in the Lakers’ favor, but he helped push the Nuggets to the brink on the road.
On Monday, with Knecht providing a spark off the bench to pair with Reaves and Luka Dončić in the starting lineup, Los Angeles beat the struggling Spurs.
After the game, Luka spoke about the promise he’s seen in Knecht during his brief time with the team.
“He had a great game,” Luka said. “He’s had a lot of great games. He’s learning how to play; I’m learning how to play with him. He’s a promising rookie for sure.”
Each draft class is filled with a myriad of players with promise and potential and Knecht has an alluring upside. However, potential and promise will only take you so far in this league.
NBA careers are often brief and fleeting. With such a short shelf life and only 15 roster spots across 30 teams, it doesn’t take a mathematician to realize the odds of a long career aren’t in favor of most rookies.
Already, less than a year into this profession, Knecht has seen the best and worst Los Angeles has to offer.
Like many promising young people, Knecht was adored, chewed up, and spat out of the City of Angels, but due to this odd scenario that kept him in town, he’s not only persevered but has begun to rise like a phoenix from the ashes.
In February, Knecht struggled, averaging 13.5 minutes, 5.1 points and 1.6 rebounds. Since the calendar turned to March, he’s playing 25.7 minutes per game, scoring 14.3 points, grabbing 3.7 rebounds and shooting 40% from deep.
As much as Knecht has earned his uptick in minutes, the Lakers have also needed him to be available and contributing. Luka, Jaxson Hayes, Rui Hachimura and LeBron James have all missed games due to injury in March.
After playing at least 20 minutes just five times in his 23 games played during January and February, Knecht has already passed the 20-minute mark in eight of the nine games he’s featured in during March.
If that kind of production can be counted on, Knecht will be a part of the Lakers rotation once games really start mattering.
This may not have been the picture-perfect start Knecht wanted for his NBA career, but he can still get his Hollywood ending by helping the Lakers go all the way.
And isn’t that what it’s all about? A chance to play good basketball at the highest level on the biggest stage in an attention-garnering city?
Knecht has rolled with the punches well so far, and if he keeps this up, he’ll be able to flip the script and write the ending he wants for his first year as a Laker.
