Lakers News: Dalton Knecht Snubbed for Rookie of the Month Honors

The Tennessee product has been a bright spot in L.A.'s season so far.

Dec 1, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Dalton Knecht (4) defends Utah Jazz guard Keyonte George (3) during the second half at the Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Creveling-Imagn Images / Christopher Creveling-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Lakers rookie shooting guard Dalton Knecht, the prime bright spot on a sadly familiar 2024-25 regular season start, just got denied Western Conference Rookie of the Month honors for the period spanning late October through November.

Per longtime NBA insider Marc Stein, Memphis Grizzlies first-year wing Jaylen Wells was named the first Western Conference Rookie of the Month this season, while Philadelphia 76ers shooting guard Jared McCain earned that honor for the East.

As far as their playing is concerned, Knecht and Wells have been relatively level this year. But Memphis has been better than Los Angeles thus far despite dealing with more injury woes, so that appears to have given the young Grizzlies upstart the edge.

Despite various injury issues incurred by All-Star point guard Ja Morant and starting shooting guard Desmond Bane, among other less essential pieces, the Grizzlies have gotten off to a 14-7 start, good for the West's No. 3 seed. Los Angeles, however, is 12-9 and has gone a middling 5-5 across its last 10 bouts, good for the conference's eighth seed.

Knecht, a 23-year-old out of Tennessee selected with the No. 17 pick in June's 2024 NBA Draft, is averaging 11.6 points on efficient .476/.410/.773 shooting splits, along with 3.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists. He recently graduated into being a full-time starter in J.J. Redick's offense, ahead of veteran former lottery pick Cam Reddish.

The 6-foot-7 Wells, drafted with the No. 39 overall pick out of Washington State this summer, is averaging a similar 12.2 points on .459/.396/.771 shooting splits, 3.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists for Memphis so far, and the 21-year-old has started 16 of his 21 contests with the club.

McCain, meanwhile, was drafted right before Knecht, with the No. 16 overall pick out of Duke. He's averaging a rookie-most 16.0 points on .448/.364/.906 shooting splits, 2.6 assists and 2.5 rebounds, and he, like Knecht, has been elevated to a starting gig already this year, ahead of aging veteran Eric Gordon.

The rest of the Lakers' season has been a bit disappointing. All-NBA power forward LeBron James has looked shockingly mortal already in moments this year. He has missed his last 24 straight 3-point attempts. All-NBA center Anthony Davis, however, has looked great as the club's offensive fulcrum. The team has struggled elsewhere along the roster, with particular holes showing up defensively along the wing.

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