“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,” said Lakers insider Jovan Buha in a recent episode of his podcast, Buha’s Block. This remark in itself was a bombshell. After all, Dalton Knecht was the same player who was picked as the 17th overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, went on to start in 16 of his 78 appearances in his rookie season, and recorded a career-high 37 points. The same player who, if all had gone well, would have been traded for Mark Williams earlier this year. Therefore, for his trade situation to plummet so deeply, something must be wrong. According to two analysts, all of Knecht’s issues are being caused by what’s on his mind.

Lakers Nation hosts Luca Rosano and Ryan Ward recently touched base on Dalton Knecht’s situation. Ward went on to highlight that, “Something’s going on with that kid’s confidence. He should have balled out. He should have been an audition. Like, if you think you’re going to get traded, you should be balling out to show why you know you’re so valuable”. Sure, anyone would lose confidence if they are presumed to be a trade target. Worse than that is when you were already put on a trade to the Charlotte Hornets, but the deal faltered because Mark Williams couldn’t pass his medical tests. However, for the two Lakers Nation hosts, this lack of confidence wasn’t just about the trade talks. It was about the fact that the rush of the rookie season is weaning off now, and the lack of it is hitting Knecht.

“Something’s going on with him, and it’s probably just that he’s a young kid. He thought, you know, he had all this hype for the first half of his rookie season, and then it kind of fell off, and he fell out of rotation. And then it just carried and, you know, got traded, came back, which has got to be weird,” said Ryan Ward. “That’s got to mess with your head. And then, he just didn’t do anything in summer league. I was so disappointed in him. I was like, ‘Oh my god, man.’”.

This lack of confidence was quite apparent in the recent Summer League games. Throughout three matchups, Dalton Knecht just averaged 10.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.3 assists. He faltered heavily on the shooting front, making 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. The fact that Bronny James, the 55th overall pick in the same draft class, was averaging a better score (14.3 ppg in 24 minutes through four games as opposed to Knecht’s 28 minutes per game) than Knecht looked pretty bad.

“He was non-existent. I mean, Bronny stood out way more than he did,” Ward added. “And it’s not a knockoff, right? Bronny has improved. It’s just the fact that you thought Knecht was more of a finished product, right? Like, he is what he is. He spent a little bit more time in college than the normal, you know, player would, and he showed it at times during the season, during the rookie season, you know, lighting teams up every once in a while. He’s got the skill, but maybe, you know, if you don’t have it upstairs, if you don’t…. if you’re not confident, I mean, that can crush the kid’s career super-fast, you know what I mean? Especially with the team like the Lakers, where it’s like basically ‘what have you done for me lately’, you know”.

How one plays in the summer league doesn’t, and should not, be an overall indication of how they play in the NBA season. Similarly to Bronny, Knecht has been working during the off-season to improve himself. He even admitted to doing three workouts a day. In the end, however, as the Lakers Nation host highlighted, it’s as much about prepping yourself mentally as it is about prepping your body.

At this point in time, no one can blame teams for no longer being enthusiastic about acquiring Knecht. Despite that, some people still have faith in him and believe that he can do better.

NBA GM defends Dalton Knecht amid recent struggles: “needs to show he can do something else”

A few days ago, Athlon Sports touched base on Dalton Knecht’s struggles. The article also highlighted remarks from an anonymous GM who belonged to an Eastern Conference franchise. According to him, Knecht’s performance in the Summer League does not change anything. After all, as he revealed, “He is a shooter, and he has shown he can shoot. He needs to show he can do something else to get and stay on the floor, for sure”.

The GM believed that Knecht’s value lay in his shooting. Sure, the Summer League is not a good benchmark. However, what about the 46.1% field goals, 37.6% 3-pointers, 76.2% free throws he averaged in the 2024-25 NBA regular season? On top of that, the GM highlighted that Knecht could evolve as a passer. If he can be a better passer, and not be a big minus defensively, and simultaneously work on his basketball IQ, Knecht can regain the mojo he lost.

“But his value has not gone anywhere, not based on a few summer games,” the GM added. “Once you’re drafted, it does not matter, no one is thinking of you as, ‘You’re a first-round pick, you’re not a first-round pick.’ It’s what you can do to help us win”.

Well, Dalton Knecht really should take advice from wherever it is coming. After all, the 24-year-old has a limited timeframe to prove to Rob Pelinka and the front office that he should stay on with the Lakers. If he ends up being traded, his plummeted value won’t allow him to join a good franchise.