The Utah Jazz have been making moves lately. Between training camp cuts and adding old friends like Tony Bradley, they are adding their finishing touches to their Opening Night roster. Rumor has it though that the Los Angeles Lakers have discussed Dalton Knecht with Utah, which ould be cruelly ironic knowing that he had his best night as a pro against them.
ClutchPoints' Brett Siegel floated the rumor that the Lakers have discussed trading Knecht to multiple teams, one of which was the Jazz. It sounds like one way or the other, Knecht's time is up in LA.
For the record, because he holds no trade value but is certainly an interesting piece to look into, teams are simply going to wait until the Lakers ultimately decide to waive him. Once he clears waivers, then teams like the Jazz will pounce.
It would make sense if they did this because Knecht had his best game as a pro against the Jazz his rookie year almost two years. Back in November 2024, Knecht obliterated Utah, putting up 37 points on 12-for-16 shooting. At one point, it looked like passing on Knecht when they had the chance was a mistake.
But after fallout from nearly trading him to Charlotte a few months later, Knecht's play has never recovered, which makes him a really interesting buy-low candidate. Specifically in Utah's case. WHen his confidence was up, he straight up killed them.
Hence, there'd be nothing wrong with seeing what he'd look like if he wore a Jazz uniform.
Knecht could be what Utah hoped Georges Niang would be
The Jazz already have a designated pure wing sharpshooter on the team: Svi Mykhailiuk. Honestly, there should be no complaints about Mykhailiuk at all. He's been a trooper and absolutely deserves his shot in the rotation. However, there's absolutely nothing wrong with having two wing sharpshooters on the team, especially if one is capable of dropping 37 points on his opponent.
Knecht is entering his third year in the NBA, but he is 25 years old, meaning he's not exactly young young. Even so, he still has the makings of a player who could give as aspiring playoff contender like the Jazz more firepower. Better yet, it would be a good change of pace for him to play for a team who would believe in him.
It's a tale as old as time that a team would add someone who went off on them, even if it was only the one time. Knecht's NBA career peaked in that lone game against Utah two years ago. Even so, for that reason, everyone would understand if the Jazz added him.
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