On Monday, the Los Angeles Lakers waived Dalton Knecht, whom they selected with the No. 17 pick in the 2024 NBA draft. They had a roster crunch after signing Matisse Thybulle and Ziaire Williams to minimum contracts this offseason, and once they couldn't find a taker for Knecht on the trade market, they had to eat his $4.2 million salary.

The good news for the Lakers is that they still have Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves. In the grand scheme of things, they'll be fine. But they also whiffed with a mid-first-round pick in 2023 when they took Jalen Hood-Schifino right ahead of Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Brandin Podziemski.

Young, cheap depth on rookie-scale contracts are the lifeblood of NBA teams these days in the second-apron era. By biffing back-to-back picks at No. 17, the Lakers made it harder on themselves to build a championship-caliber supporting cast around Dončić and Reaves. Granted, landing a reclamation project like Williams—the No. 10 overall pick in 2021—on a minimum deal could help undo some of that damage.

With the benefit of hindsight, we now know the Lakers made a mistake during the 2024 draft. Knowing who they could have taken instead makes it even worse.

Tristan Da Silva, SF (No. 18)

Much like Knecht, Tristan Da Silva was on the older side heading into the 2024 draft. He turned 23 in May of that year after spending four seasons at Colorado. But since Knecht's age didn't dissuade the Lakers from drafting him, Da Silva should have been in play as well.

Da Silva had a slightly higher 3-point percentage in college (38.6 percent) than Knecht (38.3 percent), and he wasn't cutting his teeth against mid-major competition for most of his collegiate experience. While he hasn't put up huge numbers over his first two years in the NBA, he did start 34 games for the Orlando Magic last season while averaging nearly 10 points in only 24.7 minutes and shooting 37.4 percent from deep. He also graded out positively on defense last year, which was never in the cards for Knecht.

The rise of NIL in college has made NBA teams less wary of drafting older prospects. The Lakers just chose the wrong old guy.

Ja'Kobe Walter, SG (No. 19)

Heading into the 2024 draft, the Lakers were still more than a half-year away from ripping off Nico Harrison and the Dallas Mavericks in the Dončić heist. A guard might not be their priority now that they have Dončić and Reaves as their starting backcourt, but they went into the 2024-25 campaign with D'Angelo Russell starting alongside Reaves.

Since Reaves is much more offensively minded, the Lakers could have used a defensive bulldog like Marcus Smart—whom they signed as a free agent in the 2025 offseason—alongside him. And sitting right there on the board was Ja'Kobe Walter, who has quickly established himself as a menace on that end of the floor during his two seasons in Toronto.

Walter shot only 37.6% from the field during his lone year at Baylor, which might have scared the Lakers away. But his 6-foot, 10-inch wingspan would have been a welcome addition next to Reaves.

Jaylon Tyson, SG (No. 20)

After playing sparingly as a freshman at Texas, Jaylon Tyson transferred to Texas Tech as a sophomore and started to make a name for himself. But he really took off at Cal as a junior, where he averaged 19.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.6 made threes, 1.2 steals and 0.5 blocks in 34.3 minutes per game.

Tyson's NBA arc is following a similar path. He played only 453 total minutes as a rookie in Cleveland, but he started 42 games for the Cavaliers last season and averaged 13.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists while shooting 49.3% overall and a scorching 44.6 percent from deep on 4.5 attempts per game.

At 6-foot-5 with a 6-foot, 8-inch wingspan, Tyson could have slotted in next to Reaves and Dončić in the Lakers' backcourt. In fact, that might have been the best three-guard trio in the NBA outside of Oklahoma City and San Antonio.

Yves Missi, C (No. 21)

The Lakers came into the 2024 NBA draft with Anthony Davis still on their roster, so center wasn't a major need for them. But given Davis' injury history, the could have always used more depth at that position, particularly if they were open to trading him down the road.

Yves Missi played alongside Ja'Kobe Walter at Baylor in 2023-24, putting up 10.7 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in only 22.9 minutes per game while shooting 61.4 percent from the floor. The New Orleans Pelicans selected him with the No. 21 overall pick in that year's draft, and he received a second-team All-Rookie nod after averaging 9.1 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game during his debut campaign.

Missi's production backslid last season, as the Pelicans traded up to select fellow center Derik Queen at No. 13, which pushed him to the bench. He still managed to block 1.5 shots in only 19.7 minutes per game as a sophomore, which speaks to the type of rim-protecting impact he could have had on the Lakers.

Kyshawn George, SG/SF (No. 24)

Kyshawn George didn't put up huge numbers during his lone season at Miami, although he did shoot a sizzling 40.8 percent from 3-point range. That sharpshooting ability led the Washington Wizards to select him with the No. 24 overall pick on draft night, although it didn't translate to the NBA right away.

As a rookie, George averaged 8.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.7 threes while starting in 38 of his 68 appearances for the moribund Washington Wizards, but he shot only 37.2 percent overall and 32.2 percent from deep. This past season, his per-game production jumped to 14.8 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.5 assists, and his efficiency rose as well (43.8 percent overall, 38.1 percent from downtown.)

Having another well-rounded wing next to Reaves and Dončić would have made the post-LeBron Lakers even deeper this season. Instead, George will now battle for minutes on a Wizards team that finally might try to win games for a change.

Ajay Mitchell, SG (No. 38)

The OKC Thunder did it again. They scooped up Ajay Mitchell in the second round of the 2024 draft and have been laughing their way to the bank ever since.

As a rookie, Mtichell put up 6.5 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 16.6 minutes per game. After that season, the Thunder signed him to a three-year, $8.7 million contract, because Sam Presti is apparently playing 6-D chess while the rest of the NBA is playing checkers.

Last season, Mitchell finished fifth in the Sixth Man of the Year race after putting up 13.6 points, 3.6 assists and 3.3 rebounds in only 25.8 minutes per game. He was in the midst of an even more impressive breakout in the postseason before a calf injury cut his playoff run short.

Mitchell is now on one of the NBA's best-value contracts for the next two seasons, while Knecht is not even on an NBA roster at the moment. The rich get richer.

Jaylen Wells, SG/SF (No. 39)

After spending two years at Sonoma State, Jaylen Wells transferred to Washington State ahead of his junior season and averaged 12.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.1 threes and 1.2 assists in only 29.2 minutes while shooting 41.7 percent from deep. That was enough to pique the interest of the Memphis Grizzlies, who selected him with the No. 39 overall pick.

Wells hit the ground running in the NBA, averaging 10.4 points, 3. 4rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.7 threes in only 25.9 minutes per game as a rookie to finish third in the Rookie of the Year race. His production didn't drastically spike last year, but he's graded out as a plus defender in both of his NBA seasons to date.

When Bleacher Report re-drafted the 2024 draft earlier this year, Wells landed in the lottery. Even if he never becomes an above-average three-point shooter, his length and defensive ability should help him carve out a solid NBA career. The same can't be said of Knecht.