Dalton Knecht’s time at Los Angeles is on a ticking clock since the February Mark Williams trade. With the summer league also not going as planned, the stay looks even more doubtful now. So when Lakers insider Jovan Buha said, “Summer League has not helped Knecht’s stock, and I don’t think at this point he is valued as a first-round pick, in terms of an asset valuation,” a few weeks ago, it made sense. Once termed as a future star, Knecht has now lost all the hype as he heads to his 2nd NBA season.

What forced his reputation to take a hit is that after a missed chance in the regular season, the Summer League too seemed flat when compared with the 55th Draft pick of 2024, Bronny James. If Buha is to be believed, Knecht’s current reputation might cause JJ Redick to lose confidence in him, and it isn’t sweet. In a recent segment of his show, the Lakers insider, along with guest host Tim (aka Cranjis McBasketball), touched base on what is expected from the Lakers in the future. When going into detail, Buha dropped a bomb by saying that when he talked about the rotation players, he didn’t include Dalton Knecht at all!

“Um, I think, all things considered, it’s Dalton. Maybe I’m factoring in summer league too much, but I don’t think he…. based on the JJ’s trust level in him last year, and uh, him seemingly not improving this summer, at least as of yet, I don’t think he projects to be a rotation player,” said Buha. But was Dalton Knecht’s performance in the Summer League so bad that it might get him out of the LA Lakers’ regular-season rotation? Even Tim pointed out where Knecht might have failed to impress JJ and co.

“He just did not read the play well pre-catch or post-catch, and he ended up just jacking up so many dumb, bad, heavily contested shots. And you cannot do that with the faces we’re looking at on the screen right now. There are too many good players around you that if the defense is in your face, something’s wrong. Someone else should be open. And he just has not been able to make those reads. And if you’re not going to be the right connecting piece, then that concerns me,” Tim pointed out. And when we analyzed the stats, it reflected the same.

Throughout three matchups in Las Vegas, Knecht just averaged 10.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.3 assists. He faltered heavily with his shooting, recording just 4.0-14.3 (27.9%) field goals, 1.7-7.0 (23.8%) 3-pointers, and 0.7-2.0 (33.3%) free throws. This looks bad when comparing his average score in last year’s Summer League, which was an impressive 21.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists. On top of that, Bronny James averaged a better score in this Summer League by averaging 14.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 3.8 assists in 4 games.

JJ Redick might have been inclined to place confidence in Knecht if the Lakers had no other choice. However, with Jake LaRavia, the team can experiment. Because outside of the principal shot creators, there’s not a lot of shooting taking place. In light of this, the Lakers might make use of Jake LaRavia, who signed a 2-year, $12 million contract with the Lakers, to space the floor around the three principal scorers (LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves). As Tim (aka Cranjis McBasketball) explained in the same episode, “I don’t think he’s like a great, lead guard playmaker kind of guy. But he (LaRavia) can be a really good ball mover. And I think that fits in really well”.

All these remarks make one thing clear: Dalton Knecht’s future within the Lakers is at an uncertain stage. This would make one wonder whether the front office might proceed to look for another trade for the 24-year-old small forward/shooting guard.

Will Dalton Knecht be traded to the Phoenix Suns for Royce O’Neale?

It is no secret that the Lakers’ front office would be open to trading Dalton Knecht. After all, they attempted to do it back in February, when Knecht was still considered a valuable player, by negotiating with the Charlotte Hornets to acquire Mark Williams in exchange. That trade, however, was rescinded after Williams reportedly failed his physical. Though the Lakers have now solved their Center issue, they could always get better.

A few days ago, ‘The Sporting News’ reporter Dean Simon said that it might be in Pelinka’s best interests to contact the Phoenix Suns and negotiate a deal for Royce O’Neale. To sweeten any potential deal, Simon suggested that “it’s likely that Knecht would have to be packaged with an expiring contract, like Maxi Kleber’s $11 million salary, to push this deal across the finish line”.

Being 32 years old, Royce O’Neale carries valuable regular-season experience, playoff experience, defensive versatility, and consistent three-point shooting. All of this makes him a perfect complementary piece that could aid LeBron James and Luka Dončić. Unlike Knecht, Royce O’Neale improved. His performance in the 2024-25 season was his best, as he averaged 9.1 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 2.2 assists. Furthermore, in terms of floor spacing, O’Neale’s reported 40.6% accuracy from three on nearly six attempts per game could open up the floor for James and Dončić.

As Jovan Buha highlighted, Knecht’s trade value has plummeted. Therefore, the Phoenix Suns might not be willing to accept the player at his current stage. Then again, weirder things have happened in the NBA trade cycle. Therefore, it remains to be seen what the future holds for Knecht.