Picture this: You grow up with LeBron James’ posters on the wall. You just hope one day that the King can even notice you across the room, and give you a warm hug coupled with an autograph. But Dalton Knecht has reached heights his dream never even accounted for. They now share the same locker room, and you’d ought to find him pinch himself everyday. However, you eventually do wake up one day. And Knecht’s reality has little to do with LA anymore. Will that stop him, though? Not at all.

The number of games has never been a problem for Dalton. It’s just 19.2 minutes a piece at the age of 24, which might be causing most of his off-season rumors for now? There has to be some initiative from his end if he wants this to change. But despite all of this, the ever so optimistic Dalton is ready to keep it going for the LakeShow. “He said he can play another 5, 10 years,” said Knecht on James. “So, me and ‘Bron could run it for another five, 10 years. Why not?!” Well, he might think so. But his team is here to answer the “why not” part of it all.

“Basically, it comes down to the Lakers only have so many assets to trade, and Dalton Knecht I think at best next season is an eighth man and probably is an eighth, ninth man,” said Johan Buva, “And when thinking about the Lakers trying to get a starting center or a starting wing, you need to give something up to get that player.”

Although, the Lakers might not be the only stopgap in Knecht’s dream. After what we’ve heard online, LeBron James himself might be a part of those crumbling the 24-year-old’s dream. His off-season has been littered with retirement rumors for the past few years. But will this year be the ultimatum? Maybe; after his recent post, you can’t really cross it off the books.

Let’s travel back to Saturday, where the King made a…let’s say “controversial” post, regarding his future. And there were far too many resemblances to reality for any of us to take a chill pill. In the video, there were tons of reporters asking the one question everyone’s waiting to know the answer to: “LeBron, are the retirement rumors true? What’s next?” and as the King goes to reply, the video cuts. He did caption it saying, “I’ve been asking myself the same question… 🤔👑 #ad.” So we never know until news comes directly from the throne.

But anyone worth their salt knows that this Lakers squad isn’t close to competing for a conference title itself, never mind their 18th chip. So, what’s next for the LakeShow? Who will they partner Luka Doncic and James with, to get them ever-so closer to a new ring?

Brook Lopez enters the Lakers chat

The Bucks only want to get younger and faster. So Milwaukee has pretty much written Lopez’ future on the wall. He averaged 13.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.6 steals, and 1.9 blocks per game this past season. But well, he enters free agency now. And he is 37 years old. At times, he has looked out of place in the Milwaukee rotation. Some hope lingers though. Some insiders call Lopez a perfect fit at the Showtime—with some caution, of course.

“The Lakers have long been fans of Lopez, sources say. That doesn’t guarantee they will pursue him again, but the Lakers are indeed expected to be a player in the center market this summer,” wrote NBA insider Jake Fischer. Wouldn’t he be a fantastic fit? Even in a realm where the mantra is “the younger, the better”, he’s unbelievably productive on both ends of the floor for a man of his age. And if they’re smart, they’ll act quickly.

It’s all up to the Lakers now. Their situation is incredibly complicated – with extensions from LeBron James and Luka Doncic in the wait. On top of that, the futures of Austin Reaves and Dalton Knecht are still undecided. And with the Brook Lopez deal entering the chat, all we can do is just sit back, and enjoy the show.