Former SEC Player of the Year and current Lakers Rookie Dalton Knecht touted an impressive 27 points in Los Angeles’ 104-99 win over New Orleans. It was the second straight start for the VFL, and he certainly made the most of it. Knecht finished the win with 27 points, seven rebounds, two assists, two steals, and zero turnovers. The sharpshooting guard did it at a high clip, as he was 10-of-17 from the field, and 5-10 from three.
Knecht found himself in the starting lineup after Rui Hachimura and Cam Reddish could not play. Now, it may be hard to take Knecht out of it. Knecht has drawn praise from his future hall-of-fame teammates LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Davis went far enough to say that he and his teammates get frustrated with Knecht when he doesn’t shoot the ball, showing their ultimate trust in the rookie.
Anthony Davis on Dalton Knecht:
“Every time he shoots the ball, we think it’s gonna go in. That’s why we get so frustrated and upset when he doesn’t shoot. He’s a great player.”
— Lakers Nation (@LakersNation) November 17, 2024
James spoke highly of Knecht, stating that it is no surprise what Knecht has been able to do over the past three games. In the past three performances, Knecht has averaged 20 points in an extremely efficient manner.
Dalton Knecht’s last three games:
20.0 PPG
4.0 3PMon 64/63/100% shooting. pic.twitter.com/3TZFlBHtO2
— StatMuse (@statmuse) November 17, 2024
In those three games, he saw increased minutes in games against the Grizzlies, Spurs, and Pelicans.
More From RTI: LeBron James: Dalton Knecht ‘Looked Like He Was Back At Tennessee Against Grizzlies
Against the Grizzlies, Knecht played 31 minutes and caught fire. He finished with 19 points, as he was seven-of-eight from the field and was perfect from three-point range as he made all five attempts. This performance likely gave the Lakers enough confidence in the rookie to start him amidst the unavailability of Hachimura and Reddish.
In his first career start, Knecht had 14 points and three rebounds in 26 minutes. He made six-of-11 attempts from the field, and two-of-four from beyond the arc.
Those two performances were the introduction, but his performance against the Pelicans was the breakout. Knecht may have done enough to cement himself in the starting lineup. Knecht has had a great month of November with the Lakers and has earned the trust and respect of teammates. Now, he has to continue to build on this in his increased role.
Watch all of Knecht’s highlights from his 27-point performance below.
Dalton Knecht was BALLIN‼️
27 POINTS
7 REBOUNDS
2 ASSISTS
2 STEALS
58% FG
50% 3PT (5 THREES)KNECHT FOUR‼️ pic.twitter.com/fJKwxUpSRQ
— BALLIN HQ (@BallinHQ) November 17, 2024
