Lakers Rookie Class Given Surprising Grade Through First Few Months

The Los Angeles Lakers love their rookies. What kind of grade do they get for their play so far this season?

Dec 13, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Dalton Knecht (4) is defended by Minnesota Timberwolves center Naz Reid (11) in the second quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Blewett-Imagn Images / Matt Blewett-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Lakers don't normally improve their roster via the draft. Historically, it has been through free agency and trade. The two best players on their team have come to L.A. that way. Usually, the Lakers use their first-round picks as trade chips.

2023 was the first time that they'd had a first-round pick to use in quite a while. In fact, that was the first time that they kept their pick since 2018 when they took Moritz Wagner. They took Jalen Hood-Schifino, who has not worked out. 2024 saw a better return with their pick.

The Lakers selected Dalton Knecht with the 17th overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. Knecht wasn't expected to fall out of the top ten, so for him to slide to Los Angeles was incredible. He was a solid shooter coming out of Tennessee and someone who could generate his own offense,

The other draft pick that the Lakers used was the second-round pick they used to take Bronny James. He hasn't done much at the NBA level but has started to play better in the G League. He won't make any sort of impact this season, but could at some point in the future.

How well have these two rookies done in comparison to the rest of the rookies in the league? Bleacher Report recently doled out a report card for each team's rookies. The Lakers got a pretty surprising grade, grabbing an A- for their rookies so far.

Even though Knecht had a stretch to start December where he just made 3-26 from three, he still leads all rookies in the NBA in made three-pointers. He's averaging just under ten points per game and he shoots 36% from deep. While he usually comes off the bench, he has been a spot starter too.

Knecht is someone the Lakers absolutely love. His ability to stretch the floor makes him extremely valuable. He has a big body to play some solid defense, too, which is usually what rookies struggle with. LA looks at him as a core piece of the future with how he's been able to play.

Bronny still has a long way to go before he is a consistent contributor at the NBA level. With his work ethic, they don't doubt that he'll work his way on to the roster soon enough. They hope he can develop into a 3-and-D guard.

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