Lakers rookie gets limited minutes in blowout win vs Wizards (Jan. 21)

Dalton Knecht is in the midst of an up-and-down rookie season, struggling of late after showing promise in the first month. He and the LA Lakers secured their third win in four games by defeating the lowly Washington Wizards on Tuesday night.

Knecht first got on the court three minutes into the second quarter, where he quickly grabbed a rebound but missed a 3-point attempt. At the 4:20 mark, his layup attempt was blocked by fellow rookie Alex Sarr, and he was pulled from the game shortly after.

In the first half, Knecht only managed to grab two rebounds with no other notable stats.

Anthony Davis and LeBron James led the way in the first half, contributing 19 and 14 points, respectively, as the Lakers built a 59-49 lead. James also tallied seven assists and five rebounds, while Davis recorded eight rebounds and two blocks.

Jordan Poole led the Wizards with 12 points in the first half.

The Lakers dominated the second half and outscored the Wizards 22-11 in the fourth quarter. Despite the game being largely under control, Lakers coach JJ Redick kept his starters in until midway through the final period.

Dalton Knecht returned to the floor during this stretch and managed to sink a 3-pointer. Below are his full stats.

James finished with a triple-double of 21 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds, while Davis had 29 points and 16 boards.

Austin Reaves had 16 points and eight assists, while Dorian Finney-Smith had 16 points – his highest total since being traded to the Lakers.

Dalton Knecht slips off the NBA’s Rookie of the Year ladder

Dalton Knecht, once ranked as high as third on NBA.com’s Rookie of the Year ladder back in November, has seen his position steadily decline.

He has fallen in each subsequent edition and has been absent from the rankings since December 19.

Knecht initially earned his third-place ranking — behind only Jared McCain and Jaylen Wells — after an impressive nine-game stretch in November in which he averaged 18.9 points, 4.9 rebounds and 4.0 made 3-pointers per . match.

That run also featured a standout performance, scoring a career-high 37 points on 12-for-16 shooting.

Since then, however, his production has dropped significantly, averaging just 6.7 points per game. game on 39.4% shooting, including a troubling 19.2% from 3-point range.

In the weeks following his hot streak, Dalton Knecht steadily slipped down the rankings — falling to fourth, then fifth, sixth, ninth, and finally out of the top 10 altogether.

The latest Rookie of the Year ladder is now led by Alex Sarr, followed by Yves Missi and Jaylen Wells.