Dalton Knecht Waived by the Lakers With $4.2 Million Still Guaranteed
The Lakers cut the 2024 No. 17 pick at the roster deadline and carry his $4,201,080 salary as dead money.
Photo: NBA.com. Dalton Knecht, Los Angeles Lakers forward.
The Los Angeles Lakers are waiving Dalton Knecht, the No. 17 pick in the 2024 draft, minutes before Monday's 5 p.m. ET roster deadline. The Lakers will carry his fully guaranteed $4,201,080 salary for 2026-27 as dead money to get from 16 guaranteed contracts down to 15.
Los Angeles spent the weekend trying to trade him instead. Reports had the front office calling Milwaukee about center Jericho Sims, with Knecht and second-round draft capital as the offer, plus calls to Chicago and Utah. Nothing landed.
The shooter who went missing
Go back to Nov. 19, 2024. Knecht hit nine threes against Utah, tying the NBA single-game rookie record, scored a career-high 37, and dropped 21 of them in the third quarter alone. He averaged 24.3 points over his first four starts that month, per the AP.
His rookie line held up over a full season. He played 78 games with 16 starts, 19.2 minutes, 9.1 points, and 37.6% from three on 4.4 attempts a night.
Then the floor shrank. In 2025-26 he played 54 games, started one, and averaged 4.2 points in 10.2 minutes. His three-point attempts fell to 2.1 a game and his percentage slid to 34.2%. Across two seasons HoopsHype has him at 7.1 points on 46% from the field and 37% from deep.
The Charlotte trade and the option
On Feb. 6, 2025, the Lakers traded him to Charlotte with Cam Reddish and two future first-round picks for center Mark Williams. The deal was rescinded two days later, and Knecht came back as a rookie who had already been traded once before the All-Star break.
The front office exercised his third-year option on Oct. 21, 2025, which guaranteed this year's $4,201,080.
Two first-round picks in 90 seconds
The Lakers were not alone. About 90 seconds after the Knecht news, Memphis waived Walter Clayton Jr., the No. 18 pick in 2025, along with Micah Peavy.
The weekend talk had framed the last cut as Knecht or Bronny James, the No. 55 pick from that same 2024 draft. Knecht is the one leaving.
The waiver process
Waivers work the same for everyone. Any team that claims him in the next 48 hours takes on his contract. If nobody claims him, he becomes a free agent and can sign anywhere.
The Lakers open the regular season Wednesday, Oct. 21, at home against Golden State, with Knecht's $4.2 million on their books as dead money.
Sources: ESPN / Shams Charania on X (Lakers waiving Knecht), ESPN / Shams Charania on X (Grizzlies waiving Clayton and Peavy), HoopsHype / Michael Scotto on X (two-season line), Basketnews (Stein report, 16 guaranteed contracts, Sims talks), WhyNBA (Bulls and Jazz calls), Hoops Rumors (option, $4,201,080 guaranteed), Spotrac (contract, rescinded Charlotte trade), Basketball Reference (season stats), AP via NBA.com (nine threes vs. Utah), The Comeback (Knecht or Bronny framing), NBA.com Lakers schedule (Oct. 21 opener vs. Golden State).
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