As he keeps impressing in the preseason, Dalton Knecht is proving more and more that he’s ready for the NBA with JJ Redick among the believers.
After a slow start to Summer League before coming on strong late, Dalton Knecht appears to have really found his footing in the NBA.
While there are the obvious caveats of his play coming in Summer League and preseason, Knecht has continued to impress in the exhibition slate of games for the Lakers. In his most recent outing against the Bucks, Knecht played a game-high 34 minutes and led the team in field goal attempts.
After the game, head coach JJ Redick continued his ongoing praise of the rookie guard throughout the summer and preseason.
“He’s ready to play in the NBA,” Redick said. “He is still growing in terms of learning how to play with physicality, learning some defensive nuances and timing. But another kid who, his heart and intent is the same every day and it’s always in the right place. He didn’t shoot well. He ended with six offensive rebounds.
“He’s someone that you tell him to do something and he’s going to do it. ‘Dalton, crash from the corner.’ Literally, you watch it on tape, he does it every time.”
Knecht might be the beneficiary of opportunity to start the season. With a healthy roster, Knecht would be on the outside looking in for playing time after Redick revealed he was aiming for a nine-man rotation.
However, with Jarred Vanderbilt unlikely to be ready for the very start of the season, though his return timeline remains unclear, Knecht seems like the early favorite to get his minutes in the rotation. And if he can make a good early first impression, it may change the way the Lakers approach things.
He has a skill set with his shooting that the Lakers do not have on the roster. He also is willing to listen and learn, as explained by Redick. While it applied to rebounding in his quote, it could also apply to his work defensively, too, where he’s been a willing team defender on that end of the floor in preseason at the very least.
He’s a rookie and there’s going to be learning nights and struggles, but he’s also showing his potential. And it’s seems more and more likely that the Lakers got a real steal in the draft this year.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.
