Los Angeles Lakers guard Dalton Knecht was asked who has given him the best piece of advice in his rookie season and surprisingly, it’s not LeBron James. Knecht revealed during his media session at All-Star weekend that former teammate D’Angelo Russell has given him the best advice so far.
“I’d say DLo,” Knecht said. “He gave me the best advice. Right after a game, just move on. Don’t care about how you did just move on because you have the next game coming towards you. So, at the end of the day no matter how high or low that game was, you gotta move on and be ready to play the next one and get better.”
That’s especially great advice from Russell, whom the Lakers traded to the Brooklyn Nets, for a shooter like Knecht. There are going to be nights when he’s red hot and others where he goes ice-cold. It’s important not to dwell too much on either and focus on just getting better and looking forward to the next game.
Knecht has experienced plenty of highs and lows during his short time in the NBA after the Lakers selected him with the 17th pick of the 2024 draft. The 23-year-old started off his professional career on fire, with the highlight being a 37-point outing against the Utah Jazz in just his 14th game.
Not too long after, though, Knecht hit the rookie wall. He shot just 15.6% from three in December and continued to struggle at the start of the new year. That dip in play might have been what made the Lakers comfortable with the idea of parting with Knecht, as they sent him to the Charlotte Hornets as part of the package for Mark Williams.
Knecht was shaken by the move, but fortune then smiled on him, in a way. The Lakers rescinded the Williams trade over a failed medical which meant the rookie was back in LA. It certainly would have felt a bit odd to come back, but Knecht stated during this session that he is glad he gets to play with James and Luka Doncic.
“Like you said, it’s strange, one of the few people that’s ever gotten traded and then come back,” Knecht said. “So, it’s been a crazy journey. Just glad to be back and be a part of the team. Get to learn from Luka (Doncic) now. I had AD-Bron, now with Luka and Bron, so it’s crazy. Get to learn from a lot of greats.”
Knecht, who is averaging 9.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.3 steals, and 0.1 blocks per game in 2024-25, sure has been fortunate in that regard. He will now be playing against James soon, as Team Chris won the Rising Stars Championship and will take on Shaq’s OG’s in the All-Star mini-tournament.
Knecht, who had five points, one rebound, and one steal against Team G League in the final, was asked about playing in his first All-Star Game and he’s looking forward to facing off against James.
“It might be a lot of fun,” Knecht said. “… We’re going to go out there and go against those guys. I’m not sure, I get to play against Bron right? … So I get to play against one of my teammates, so it’ll be a lot of fun to go out there and try to make a statement.”
All those youngsters would be keen to make a statement against the likes of James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant. They are going to go at those OG’s and it will be interesting to see how the veterans respond.
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