Skip to main content
Join Now

Dalton Knecht ejected in bizarre fashion in Lakers' blowout win vs. Wizards

Barkley-Truaxby:Barkley Truax•01/30/25•

BarkleyTruax

Dalton Knecht | Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
(Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports ) Jul 6, 2024; San Francisco, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Dalton Knecht (4) between plays against the Sacramento Kings during the fourth quarter at Chase Center.

Los Angeles Lakers rookie Dalton Knecht was ejected during the fourth quarter of Thursday’s 134-96 win over the Washington Wizards.

In the final minutes of the blowout win, Knecht attempted a 3-pointer and believed he wasn’t given space to safely land. The officials let the game play on, but Knecht continued to plead his case despite the fastbreak on the other end of the floor.

It’s unclear what Knecht said to the official, but the former Tennessee star was hit with double technical fouls and tossed from the game. The Lakers were leading by 39 points at the time he was ejected.

He finished the game with 10 points and a rebound across 22 minutes before he was ejected.

The scoring finish was right around his season average of 9.5 points per game. However, he’s gone above and beyond that mark several times this season. During the Lakers’ last time out, a 118-104 loss at the Philadelphia 76ers, he scored 24 points and hauled in five rebounds across 23 minutes on the floor.

Knecht’s career-high still stands at 27 points, a mark he hit back in November during NBA Cup group play vs. the New Orleans Pelicans. He shot 10 of 17 from the floor including five-made 3-point baskets during that matchup. He saw 37 minutes on the court that night.

The rookie was the Lakers’ first-round pick this season, selected No. 17 overall out of Tennessee. In his lone season with the Volunteers, Knecht averaged 21.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game while shooting 45.8% from the field and 39.7% from beyond the arc. Knecht’s 21.7 points per game were the most in the SEC.

His most impressive outing came during Tennessee’s season-ending loss against Purdue in the Elite Eight. That night, Knecht broke the program record for points in an NCAA Tournament game with 37, the sixth-most ever by an SEC player. For his efforts, he was the 2024 SEC Player of the Year, a unanimous All-American (AP, NABC, Sporting News, USBWA), a Julius Erving Award honoree and a Naismith Trophy Player of the Year finalist.

Now, he’s an integral part of JJ Reddick’s lineup averaging 20.9 minutes per game across 45 games. He’s started 12 of them.

Knecht will be back on the court on Saturday night for the Lakers’ primetime matchup against the New York Knicks in Madison Square Garden. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. ET live on ABC.