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Charles Barkley Blasts NBA GMs for 'Stupidest' Move Letting Lakers Get Young Player

Andy Nesbitt

Charles Barkley is a big fan of Lakers rookie guard Dalton Knecht.
Charles Barkley is a big fan of Lakers rookie guard Dalton Knecht. / @TNT
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The NBA returned Tuesday night with the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers getting wins in their season openers. But more importantly, the best studio show in sports, Inside the NBA, also returned and the legendary crew picked up right where it left, as usual.

While Shaquille O'Neal had an honest message for Bronny James after the Lakers game, Charles Barkley had a message for NBA GMs about the Lakers before their opener.

Barkley, it seems, is a big fan of Lakers rookie guard Dalton Knecht. The former University of Tennessee star slipped in the draft last April and the Lakers were more than happy to scoop up the 2023-24 SEC Player of the Year with the No. 17 pick.

Barkley blasted NBA GMs for letting that happen:

"These NBA general managers don't have any idea what they're doing," Barkley said. "Letting the Lakers get Dalton Knecht was one of the stupidest things I've ever seen. That's a bad boy right there. Dalton Knecht: remember that name, y'all."

Knecht had five points in 16 minutes in his NBA debut against the Timberwolves on Tuesday night but looked very comfortable on the court. We'll have to wait and see if he can live up to Barkley's hype, but it wouldn't be a surprise if he ends up doing just that.

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Andy Nesbitt
ANDY NESBITT

Andy Nesbitt is the assistant managing editor of audience engagement at Sports Illustrated. He works closely with the Breaking and Trending News team to shape SI’s daily coverage across all sports. A 20-year veteran of the sports media business, he has worked for Fox Sports, For the Win, The Boston Globe and NBC Sports, having joined SI in February 2023. Nesbitt is a golf fanatic who desperately wants to see the Super Bowl played on a Saturday night.

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