One member of the Los Angeles Lakers who has been somewhat forgotten this offseason is Dalton Knecht. He had an up-and-down rookie campaign last season, and in July, he did poorly during summer league play. It led some to brand him as a possible bust.
Knecht said early in the summer that he was doing three workouts a day. During a press conference on Thursday, Lakers head coach JJ Redick surmised that those frequent workouts played a role in the sharpshooter’s poor summer league performance.
“Dalton’s in a really good spot right now,” Redick said. “I’ve had a number of conversations with him throughout the summer. They’ve all been very positive. I really believe this — the guy did too much after the season, and I think in summer league he was burnt out. He was coming in here at 5 a.m. getting shots up, then doing two workouts with our summer league staff and in the weight room.
“… He’s in phenomenal shape. He’s in a great spot mentally. He’s played well throughout September.”
Knecht averaged 9.1 points in 19.2 minutes a game and shot 46.1% from the field and 37.6% from 3-point range during the regular season. His numbers and his playing time fluctuated wildly throughout the schedule, but he showed the ability not only to hit from downtown but also to score from all three levels and make plays in transition.
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The area he needs to improve in the most is on the defensive end. But he does seem to have the basic athletic gifts needed to become a plus defender, and being in the type of shape Redick says he’s in will certainly help in that category.
Having a young player such as Knecht put in too much work is a good problem to have, as opposed to someone like that slacking off when it comes to his offseason regimen.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: JJ Redick put positive spin on Dalton Knecht’s poor summer league play