The 76ers’ early-season wins haven’t erased the one issue that keeps staring them in the face: the shooting still isn’t good enough. Through two games, Philadelphia has looked rough from deep, which is why Dalton Knecht had started to feel like the kind of midseason swing worth monitoring. That door is now shut, with the Knicks beating them to the punch.
ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported that Knecht and New York agreed to a two-way contract, giving the Knicks a low-cost shot at a player who could help their perimeter game. For Philadelphia, it’s the kind of move that lands with a little extra sting because it lined up so neatly with what the team needs right now.
There’s no pretending Knecht was a perfect answer. The Lakers moved on from him before the regular season, and there was already a reason Los Angeles was willing to part ways. Even so, with the 76ers dealing with both shooting concerns and their financial limitations, he made sense as someone worth serious consideration.
Knecht’s stock took a hit after what had looked like a strong rookie run. His confidence was reportedly shaken when the Lakers tried to trade him, only for that deal to fall apart. After that, his role shrank, especially in his sophomore season last year.
A fresh start might have worked in his favor, and Philadelphia at least looked like a roster where his game could fit. As a movement shooter, he would have landed in a setup that better matched his strengths.
Instead, the 76ers are left on the outside looking in. They do not have a direct path to add Knecht without clearing room, and now New York has him. That matters more because the Knicks are viewed as one of the main obstacles in the East, even if they may not strictly need him.
So Philadelphia keeps searching. The three-point problems are still there, and Knecht was a logical option that is no longer available.
In Other News...
Jaylen Brown Keeps Sixers Fans Watching This Celtics Drama
Even after the Celtics have moved on to other business, the Jaylen Brown-Jayson Tatum storyline still has a way of finding an audience in Philadelphia. Browns latest response to Tatums insistence that there is no animosity between them only added another layer to a relationship that has followed both players beyond Boston, especially now that Brown is wearing Sixers colors and any friction between the two is suddenly relevant to a different fan base.
Brown did not exactly close the door on the subject, instead pointing to Tatums public relations team and stopping short of saying he wants to clear the air privately. The bigger mystery is still the same one hanging over the exchange: the two stars have different versions of how much Tatum knew about Browns move from the Celtics to the Sixers, and neither has laid out the full story. For Sixers fans, it is a reminder that this is not just old Celtics drama. It is a subplot tied directly to one of their most prominent players. [Read more 🡒]
Nets 0-2 Start Still Brought A Promising Sign Fans Needed
Even in a 0-2 start, Brooklyn has had at least one encouraging development to point to, and it has come from the kind of young talent that can keep a fan base engaged through the early grind of a season. Egor Demin and Mikel Brown Jr. both showed flashes that suggested the Nets may have something worth building on, even if the results have not followed yet.
For a Philadelphia team watching the East unfold around it, that kind of early growth across the conference matters, especially with Joel Embiid set to miss a game while managing plantar fasciitis. The Sixers have their own health concerns to track, and while the Nets are still searching for their first win, the emergence of a couple of promising pieces gives Brooklyn at least one reason to stay patient. [Read more 🡒]
Jaylen Brown Just Added Real Heat To The Sixers Celtics Rivalry
Jaylen Brown has given the 76ers-Celtics rivalry a little extra edge before the season even gets rolling. Brown, now on Philadelphias side of the ledger, weighed in on Jayson Tatums reaction to Brown being traded to the Sixers and suggested his former Celtics teammate was not fully candid about it. The comments only add to a relationship that has long carried more complexity than the usual former-teammates reunion.
Now the spotlight shifts to the calendar, with Philadelphia and Boston set to see each other multiple times in the regular season and the first meeting coming Nov. 10. Brown also told Tatum to stay ready, which is the kind of line that tends to linger when two stars with a complicated history are headed for repeated head-to-head matchups. For the Sixers, it turns a familiar Eastern Conference showdown into something with a little more personal bite. [Read more 🡒]