The Los Angeles Lakers are expected to either waive or trade Dalton Knecht before the start of the 2026-27 NBA season, and a decision could come sooner than expected.
Previously, the Lakers had a hard deadline of October 19 at 2 p.m. PST, but according to several new reports, Knecht’s future in Los Angeles could be sealed much sooner.
While Knecht has been the top candidate to be off the Lakers’ roster for them to get to the 15-man limit for the start of the season, the team has also been in trade talks to send him to the Milwaukee Bucks for backup center Jericho Sims, and though a deal hasn’t been reached yet, the franchise will likely decide before the weekend is over.
Lakers Expected To Waive Dalton Knecht Today
According to NBA reporter Keith Smith, though October 19 is the deadline for teams around the league to finalize their rosters, if the Lakers are going to waive Knecht, it could come on Saturday, October 17.
“NBA teams have to set their Opening Night rosters by 5PM ET on Monday, October 19. Most teams will make their cuts by Saturday, October 17,” he wrote in a post on X.
“The reason most teams will make their camp cuts by tomorrow is that anyone who doesn’t clear waivers by Monday will incur a per-day cap hit,” he added in a separate post. “With how focused teams are on the cap/tax/aprons, they’ll waive most of their camp guys by Saturday to avoid the dead money hit.”
The reason most teams will make their camp cuts by tomorrow is that anyone who doesn't clear waivers by Monday will incur a per-day cap hit. With how focused teams are on the cap/tax/aprons, they'll waive most of their camp guys by Saturday to avoid the dead money hit. https://t.co/AEaxMK2vL3
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) October 16, 2026
Knecht is on the Lakers’ books for $4.2 million this season. However, if the franchise moves on from him by Saturday, he won’t impact the salary cap as much compared to if Los Angeles waits until the last minute, regardless of whether it’s waiving or trading him.
Knecht has been on the outside of the Lakers roster and rotation for a while. Ever since the team tried to trade him during his rookie season, he hasn’t looked like the same player that was picked 17th overall in the 2024 NBA Draft.
Despite the promise he’s shown multiple times through his first two NBA seasons with the Lakers, it looks clear that his tenure playing in the Purple and Gold is coming to an end.
Los Angeles Can Still Make A Last-Minute Trade
Even though Knecht has been the Lakers’ top candidate to be waived before the season begins, reports recently emerged that the front office had been engaged in serious trade talks with the Bucks’ Sims to add a backup center and move on from the shooting wing.
As NBA insider Jake Fischer reported, the two sides have held discussions about swapping the two players.
“League sources say that the Lakers and Bucks have held exploratory trade discussions on a framework that would ship former first-round selection Dalton Knecht to Milwaukee (along with second-round draft capital) in exchange for big man Jericho Sims,” Fischer wrote.
The Lakers have been trying to trade Knecht, as well as Jarrd Vanderbilt, for a long time, as team reporter Jovan Buha has stated several times over the past few weeks.
In an ideal world, the Lakers would make a ‘2-for-1’ consolidation trade to get to the 15-man roster limit while also upgrading the roster with a new power forward or backup center, like Sims.
However, after several failed attempts, the fact that the Lakers haven’t made a trade yet signals they will have a tough time getting one done in the few days before the official start of the new season.
Still, as Buha said, if the Lakers are going to trade Knecht, it’s going to happen soon.
“I’m not saying it’s not going to happen, but I think if it was going to happen, it would’ve happened at this point,” he said on the latest episode of his Buha’s Block show.
“There’s a chance it happens in the morning before the deadline to waive guys. So, some context here. The deadline to waive guys and get your roster (compliant with league rules) is 5 p.m. Eastern on Monday … teams actually are incentivized to waive guys by (Saturday) at 5 p.m. Eastern so whichever players they waive clear waivers before the deadline. If you don’t waive a guy by (Saturday) at that time, then they will technically count on your roster past the deadline, and every day past the deadline that the player is on your roster, you get charged additional money.”
Regardless of whether the Lakers can finalize a Knecht trade or not, there’s a very strong chance he’s off the roster by Saturday.
Los Angeles needs to have its roster set by Monday, October 19, and if any move is going to happen involving Knecht, Vanderbilt, Jaden Hardy, Bronny James, or anyone else, the front office is on a ticking clock to get a deal done.
If they can’t find a trade that works for them, Knecht will be waived from the roster very soon.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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