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Redick Believes Dalton Knecht Is Ready NBA Role With Lakers

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“He’s ready to play in the NBA. He is still growing in terms of learning how to play with physicality, learning some defensive nuances and timing. But another kid who just, his heart and his intent is the same every day and it’s always in the right place. He didn’t shoot well, but what did he end up with, six offensive rebounds? He’s someone that you tell him to do something and he’s gonna do it. ‘Dalton, crash from the corner.’ You literally watch it on tape, he does it every time. And I thought the offensive rebounding for that group over the last quarter and change was really good.”

Lakers Must Trade for Center to Help LeBron, AD Win Title

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The Los Angeles Lakers need depth at center and according to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the team is exploring options to add a big man to the roster.

It must or risk wasting the final years of LeBron James’ career and Anthony Davis’ prime.

Christian Wood is still recovering from knee surgery while Christian Koloko is still waiting to be cleared for action after experiencing blood clots in his lungs. That leaves Jaxson Hayes as the primary backup to Anthony Davis, who had previously expressed his desire not to play the five position.

There are options for the team to consider.

Atlanta’s Clint Capela has an expiring $22 million deal that would immediately improve the Lakers’ roster and further establish them as a legitimate threat out west, but the team would have to be willing to trade a valued player for him as the Hawks are not likely to sit back and accept nothing of substance in return.

Gabe Vincent, Rui Hachimura, and/or Jarred Vanderbilt would almost have to be involved in whatever deal the team would put together, and even then, dealing Vanderbilt to another team undermines the intent to get stronger at center.

That there would be no commitment beyond 2024 is equally as concerning given what the team would give up to acquire Capela, who averaged 25.8 minutes, 11.5 points, 10.6 rebounds, and 1.2 assists last season.

The Utah Jazz’s characteristically enormous trade demand for Walker Kessler (two first-rounders per Marc Stein) means the talented young center is unlikely to be a realistic option for the Lakers, even if he fits the team and could make for a potent one-two punch with Davis.

The best option for the team might be Robert Williams III, a defensive-minded center from the Portland Trailblazers. While he has a history of injuries and has played in more than 50 games only twice in his career, he can be acquired relatively easily from a team brimming with centers and at a reasonable cap hit of just under $12.5 million in 2024-25.

If the intent is to keep Davis at the center position and use Vanderbilt once he is back at the beginning of the season, acquiring Williams for depth carries much less risk than if the team needed him to step in and play significant minutes every game.

Williams is a career 72.9 percent shooter from the paint, with 4.3 defensive rebounds, 2.6 offensive rebounds, and 1.7 blocks. His stats will not jump off the page at anyone, but he plays gritty defense and can provide the team a level of toughness at the rim that it could use as it looks to set a tone in a jam-packed Western Conference.

For a team that has championship aspirations under first-year coach JJ Redick, it cannot roll into another season in which James and Davis are healthy but a lack of depth behind them limits production and ultimately lands them in play-in games.

The front office must make a deal to secure quality at a needed position if the team will live up to expectations. Otherwise, the result is another lost year, something neither of the organization’s two biggest stars has many of left.

It will not be easy, especially given their abysmal cap situation, but some creative maneuvering by the front office should still be able to make something work with a trade here and some salary dumping there, to ensure the team maximizes its potential.

Russell thinks he can break Lakers 3-point record again this season

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D’Angelo Russell’s breakout season last year featured many memorable moments. Whether it was his game-winning shot against Milwaukee, his insane 3-pointer against the Warriors or his performance in the play-in game in New Orleans, Russell shined bright across the second half of the season.

The end result of that production was him setting a franchise record for 3-pointers in a single season. He finished the year with 226 makes, shattering the previous high mark of 183 makes.

The goal now? Break the record again.

During Media Day, D’Lo spoke on Spectrum SportsNet and spoke about why he thinks he can break the record again.

“I think so. Honestly, respectfully, I haven’t played in a system or structure of this caliber that he’s trying to implement. So for me, I’m super excited playing with the ball, without the ball, just playing high-level basketball. You could easily go to a team and get shipped off somewhere and you’re not playing as high-level of basketball as you were playing and you have to recalibrate that. For me to be in this position again, I’m grateful.”

This wasn’t the first time D’Lo spoke about structure during Media Day. It is clearly something that he took notice of and appreciated before training camp even started.