Lakers Need to Cut Struggling Shooter's Minutes After All-Star Break

The Los Angeles Lakers are entering the All-Star break in a great position, sitting in fifth place in the Western Conference with a 32-20 record. With Luka Doncic finally getting back on the court, the Lakers have a shot at clinching home-court advantage in the playoffs as they are only three games behind the No. 2 seed, the Memphis Grizzlies.

In order to do that, however, JJ Redick needs to make some tough decisions. The Lakers made the blockbuster Doncic deal before the deadline, and while that was a no-brainer move for the Lakers, it created new problems that Redick needs to solve. While these problems can be hard to solve during the season, having Doncic and James on the same team can be the best way to solve any issue.

Lakers Need to Reduce Dalton Knecht's Minutes Before the Postseason

One thing Redick seriously needs to consider is reducing rookie Dalton Knecht's minutes. The sharpshooter is admittedly going through a difficult time after he thought he was traded to the Charlotte Hornets in the Mark Williams deal. After the trade was rescinded, Knecht returned to Los Angeles and played against the Jazz before the All-Star break.

Seeing Knecht back in a Lakers uniform was good, but the team may be better off limiting his minutes as we get closer to the postseason.

The talented rookie is a good shooter but does little else. Plus, even as a shooter, he is not among the league's elite. 36% from downtown on 4.5 attempts per game is fine but not enough to make up for his deficiencies in other areas.

His defensive deficiencies are especially a problem. Considering the fact that the Lakers don't have a good defensive center anymore, they have to be as solid as possible on the perimeter. Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves can cause enough problems there that the Lakers can't afford to play another defensive liability like Knecht.

Throughout the season, the Lakers have been +5.3 points per 100 possessions better with Knecht off the floor than with him on, per Cleaning the Glass. The defense has especially struggled in those minutes, putting up a 118.9 defensive rating.

To maximize their chances of being a serious championship contender, the Lakers need to put as much defense as possible around Doncic and LeBron James. Knecht, unfortunately, doesn't fit that bill.

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