Dalton Knecht Re-Finding Rhythm for Lakers

Rookie Dalton Knecht is re-finding his earlier-season magic for Los Angeles.

Dec 25, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Dalton Knecht (4) dribbles against the Golden State Warriors during the second quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

First-year player Dalton Knecht has already experienced the ups-and-downs of the NBA, seeing a blistering start to his season and an ensuing period of rougher performances.

In a nine-game stretch from mid to late-November, Knecht set the league ablaze, scoring 18.9 points on 52% 3-point shooting. The stretch was largely encapsulated by a 37-point game against the Hornets, where he at one point scored 22-straight points.

It hasn’t been all sunshine since, though.

In the next 14 games — dating to Thursday’s game against Portland — he’s scored just 6.8 points on 40% shooting overall, starting in just five games.

Still, he’s starting to find his groove again. In tonight’s win over the Hawks, Knecht scored an efficient 13 points on 4-for-7 shooting, nailing all three of his triples. Even more, he added four rebounds, one assists and one steal in finishing as a +6 off the bench.

With the solid outing, he’s now scored in double-figures in three of his last five games, topping out at 18 points against the Kings.

Despite his statistical lull, Knecht’s season line is still perfectly respectable for a first-year player, hovering around 10 points per game on 46% shooting, with three rebounds and one assist per game to boot. His defense stands to get better as he continues his career, but he’s otherwise been as advertised for the Lakers.

The Lakers and Knecht are back in action on Sunday, Jan. 5, with a matchup against a tough Western Conference opponent in Houston.

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