Lakers’ Dalton Knecht returns to starting lineup against Spurs
SAN ANTONIO — Lakers coach JJ Redick alluded to possible changes after Tuesday night’s road loss to the Phoenix Suns.
Just one day later, a significant change was made.
Rookie forward Dalton Knecht replaced Cam Reddish in the starting lineup ahead of Wednesday night’s road game against the San Antonio Spurs, rejoining the first unit alongside LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura.
The last time the Lakers shook up their starting lineup, replacing D’Angelo Russell with Reddish, it was to provide more balance in the opening unit.
But this time, the Lakers leaned into their offensive identity by inserting Knecht back into the first unit after he had the best stretch of his brief NBA career as a starter.
Knecht averaged 23.8 points (60.3% shooting, 57.6% from 3-point range) and 4.8 rebounds in four games (35.2 minutes) as a starter from Nov. 15-21, a stretch when the Lakers went 3-1, while Hachimura was sidelined because of a sprained left ankle.
Hachimura replaced Knecht as a starter ahead of Saturday’s home loss to the Denver Nuggets, with Knecht averaging 8 points and 4.5 rebounds as a reserve in the Lakers’ past two games, both losses, before moving back into the starting lineup.
“He’s gotten some good looks,” Redick said Tuesday. “And maybe there is something to the flow that he can get to and the rhythm that he can get to if he’s a starter. Like I’ve said to you guys, everything is always up for discussion in our coaches’ meetings. So we’ll look at everything.”
The Lakers were without backup center Jaxson Hayes (ankle), who injured his right ankle after dunking with just over a minute left in the game against the Suns. Hayes, who made his return to the lineup on Tuesday after missing the previous six games because of a sprained right ankle, was helped to the locker room after momentarily laying on the floor.
“It’s not presenting, as [Dr. Leroy Sims, the Lakers’ director of player performance and health] would say, it’s not presenting like a reaggravation,” Redick said before the game. “We’ll get more information, I’m assuming, when we get back to L.A.”
ACKNOWLEDGING SHORTCOMINGS
The Lakers entered Wednesday with a 122.4 defensive rating (points allowed per 100 possessions) for the league’s worst mark in the teams’ last four games.
Davis mentioned a lack of communication as a reason for the Lakers struggling on that end of the court after Tuesday’s loss.
Redick agreed with Davis, acknowledging the Lakers’ season-long struggles on that end of the floor.
“I wouldn’t say the past few games,” Redick said before Wednesday’s game. “I would probably say the past, where are we at, 17, the past 14 games, maybe 15 games. Our communication level is not that of a great defensive team.”
The Lakers entered the matchup against the Spurs with a 118.2 defensive rating for the NBA’s fourth-worst mark, including a 119.1 defensive rating over the past 15 games (the league’s second-worst mark in that span) after strong performances on that end of the floor in their first two games.