Rob Pelinka has a problem. The Lakers need a center, and they need it badly. It’s the most obvious hole on a roster built to win now, and the entire league knows it. That desperation is driving up the price, and the latest trade rumors make it clear: if the Lakers want real help, Dalton Knecht might be the cost.
Knecht is no stranger to the trade block. After being drafted by the Lakers, he was immediately flipped to the Hornets in a deadline deal for center Mark Williams, only for the trade to be rescinded after Williams failed his physical. It was a chaotic introduction to the league for the rookie sharpshooter. “It was hard. I got drafted here, so L.A. means a lot,” Knecht said after the trade fell apart. “Whatever happens, happens. I’m just going to compete hard wherever I go, and hopefully it’s L.A.” Unfortunately for him, it seems “whatever happens” might involve him packing his bags again.
One way or another, Dalton Knecht is the centerpiece of the Lakers’ offseason plans. The most recent proposal, floated by The Athletic’s Dan Woike and broken down on the Lakers Nation Podcast, has the Lakers targeting Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton. But at $25 million per year, Claxton is expensive, and as podcast host Trevor Lane explained, putting together a trade package is a complicated math problem. “We’re probably talking about something somewhat similar in terms of the value pieces going out to the Marc Williams trade,” Lane said. “And that would be some combination of Dalton Knecht, the 2031 first-round pick that the Lakers have to offer, maybe there’s a pick swap or two in there.”
The issue, as Lane detailed, is salary matching. The failed trade for Mark Williams was simple because Williams’s small contract meant the Lakers only had to send out Knecht and Cam Reddish to make the money work. But Claxton’s $25 million salary makes things much more difficult. It’s not impossible, but it would require the Lakers to gut their depth, packaging Knecht with multiple expiring contracts like those of Gabe Vincent, Maxi Kleber, or even Jared Vanderbilt. In essence, the Lakers would have to give up their best young asset, a future first-round pick, and several rotation players just to get the deal done.
So why would the Lakers even consider paying such a steep price? Because Nic Claxton is the exact player they need. He’s a young, athletic, 6-foot-11 center who can be the defensive anchor and elite lob threat they’ve been missing. For a team built around ball-dominant creators like LeBron James and Luka Dončić, a low-usage, high-energy big man who can protect the rim, run the floor, and finish above the rim is the perfect puzzle piece. He doesn’t need the ball in his hands to be effective, and that is extremely crucial when playing alongside two of the best offensive engines in the league.
However, there is another, more creative proposal floating around that comes directly from ESPN’s Bobby Marks. He suggests the Lakers could use Knecht and that same 2031 first-round pick to trade up in this week’s draft to select a center. This deal, also broken down by Lane, is a complex three-teamer involving the Nets and Trail Blazers, but it’s entirely contingent on one player: Duke’s 7-foot-2 center, Khaman Maluach.
Feb 14, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; Team C forward Dalton Knecht (4) of the Los Angeles Lakers dunks the ball during the 2025 NBA Rising Stars Game at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images
If Maluach is available at the No. 8 pick, the Lakers would pounce, sending Knecht and their future first to Brooklyn to secure their big man of the future. Both of these scenarios highlight the central truth of the Lakers’ offseason: if they’re going to get the help they need, a promising young player like Dalton Knecht is almost certainly going to be sacrificed.
Rob Pelinka is desperately searching for a center in a market of red flags
This is the tightrope Rob Pelinka is walking. On one hand, he has to find a big man who can be a lob threat for superstars like LeBron James and Luka Doncic. On the other hand, he’s navigating a market that, as Trevor Lane described it, is a minefield of “red flags, unattainable price tags, and poor on-court fits.”
The list of available big men is thin and full of complications. Take Kristaps Porziņģis. Just a few days ago, reports surfaced that the Lakers were one of 10 to 12 teams interested in the former Maverick. But that ship has already sailed, as the Celtics traded him to the Atlanta Hawks in a cost-cutting move. Even if he were still available, his injury history would have made him a massive risk. Then there are guys with unattainable price tags, like Utah’s Walker Kessler, who would simply cost more in a trade than the Lakers can afford.
That leaves the Lakers sifting through a list of players who just don’t quite fit. “Poor on-court fits could be guys like Jonas Valančiūnas, Jakob Poeltl,” Lane explained on his podcast. “I like Jakob Poeltl a lot, but is he that bouncy lob threat Luka’s looking for? No. Is he the three-point shooter that you’re looking for to space the floor? No.” This is why a guy like Nic Claxton is so appealing—he ticks all the boxes. But it’s also why the asking price is so high.
The Lakers aren’t the only team looking for a center, which has created a seller’s market. And Pelinka’s past moves have shown that he’s not afraid to make tough, unsentimental decisions to get his guy. Just ask Quincy Olivari. Olivari, an undrafted rookie, was waived by the Lakers mid-season to make room for center Trey Jemison. He later described the moment he got the news as devastating. “I remember going into the locker room… and I just kind of called my agent and my mom and dad… After I said they waved me, I like started crying,” Olivari confessed on a podcast. “I couldn’t believe that that’s what happened.”
It’s a brutal reminder that for all the talk of culture and chemistry, the NBA is a business. And right now, the business of the Lakers is winning a championship before LeBron James’s window closes for good. To do that, they need a center. Whether it’s Nic Claxton or another target, the price will almost certainly be steep. And it will likely come at the cost of a promising young player like Dalton Knecht, a sacrifice Rob Pelinka seems more than willing to make.
The post Dalton Knecht Sacrificed in Trade Proposal for $49.5M Star Solving Key Lakers Concern appeared first on EssentiallySports.
