talen horton-tucker

Why Trading for Myles Turner Could Be Los Angeles Lakers’ Perfect Move!

March 3, 2021 By LakerTom 11 Comments

While a third superstar to go with LeBron James and Anthony Davis to match the Nets’ Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden would be great, the perfect move for the Lakers could be to trade for Myles Turner.

In fact, there’s a case to be made that trading for Turner would be a smarter and more realistic move for the Lakers than trading for a superstar and Myles just might be available as playing him next to Sabonis is not working. However, it’s still going to take an impressive offer from the Lakers to tempt the Pacers to trade Turner, who’s leading the league with career best 3.4 blocks and career best 1.1 steals in a career high 31.5 minutes per game.

That’s why the Lakers need to offer a package for Myles Turner the Pacers couldn’t refuse: 27-year old 6MOY Montrezl Harrell, 25-year old two-way star Kyle Kuzma, and 20-year old potential superstar Talen Horton-Tucker.

Let’s review why this is a win-win trade, why Myles Turner could be key to the win-now Lakers repeating as champs, and why Montrezl Harrell, Kyle Kuzma, and Talen Horton-Tucker could transform the Pacers into winners.

WHY THE TRADE IS A WIN FOR LAKERS!

The Los Angeles Lakers have two serious needs that must be addressed to repeat as NBA champs: better rim protection and more 3-point shooting. Trading for Myles Turner dramatically improves the Lakers in both areas.

While he’s not a superstar per se, Turner has the skill set to arguably be a superstar in the role he’d play on the Lakers, which is a modern starting center who can protect the rim on defense and space the floor on offense. Myles leads the league in blocked shots and has the quickness and mobility to defend smaller players on the perimeter. He’s also a career 34.7% 3-point shooter who takes 4.6 threes per game and finishes ferociously at the rim.

Turner is the missing puzzle piece that elevates the Lakers’ top ranked championship defense to the next level. He and Anthony Davis would give the Lakers’ defense an unmatched pair of pterodactyl sized shot blockers. More importantly, the Lakers could stagger Turner’s and Davis’ minutes to keep an elite rim protector on the floor for the entire game. And Myles has the size, mobility, hops, and athleticism to defend Jokic and Embiid.

Turner gives the Lakers the low post dunks off lobs and rugged rebounding they’ve missed without McGee and Howard and a faster, quicker, and more mobile defender who can rotate and challenge shooters on the perimeter. Unlike last year’s old school low post centers, Myles can’t be played off the floor defensively and doesn’t allow opponents to pack the paint offensively to prevent LeBron James and Anthony Davis from getting to the rim.

Finally, landing the 6′ 11,” 250 lb Turner solves the problem of Anthony Davis preferring to play most of his minutes at power forward to avoid the physical banging and injury risks that inevitably come from playing center. Pairing the 24-year old Turner with the 27-year old Davis also solidifies the Lakers’ starting front court for the next decade and helps to extend their championship window well past the eventual end of LeBron James career.

While giving up Harrell, Kuzma, and Horton-Tucker is a huge price to pay, the 24-year old 6′ 11,” 250 lb Turner has the potential to transform the Los Angeles Lakers from a one time champion into the NBA’s next dynasty.

WHY THE TRADE IS A WIN FOR THE PACERS!

Indiana’s experiment under new coach Nate Bjorkgren to play 6′ 11,” 240 lb Domantas Sabonis and 6′ 11,” 250 lb Myles Turner together is not working as the 15–18 Pacers have now lost 4 straight and fallen to 9th in the East.

While the Pacers won 4 of their first 5 games with Sabonis and Turner playing together, it’s become increasingly obvious two bigs front court has been a failure and they need to move Sabonis to center and trade Turner. The following chart using stats from NBA.com shows how the offensive, defensive, and net ratings of the Sabonis and Turner 2-player lineups and the Indiana Pacers as a team have declined each month this season.

Since Sabonis is the Pacers’ franchise player and Turner’s contract too expensive for a reserve, the Pacers would be smart to trade him now for multiple players who can provide them needed scoring and bench depth. With LeVert and Warren expected back sometime this season, the Pacers aren’t ready to tank. They just need to turn Turner into two or three players who fit better with their core of Sabonis, Brogdon, LeVert, and Warren.

The talented package of Harrell, Kuzma, and Horton-Tucker from the Lakers could be just what the Pacers need. Montrezl Harrell could be the instant offense small ball center they need when Domantas Sabonis rests. Kyle Kuzma could step right in and give their offense and defense a boost as starting power forward and 20-year old Talen Horton-Tucker is the wild card in the trade with his legitimate potential to become a future superstar.

A Pacers’ roster with Brogdon, LeVert, Warren, Kuzma, and Sabonis starting and Holiday, McDermott, McConnell, Harrell, and Lamb coming off the bench would clearly be a better, more diverse, and deeper playoff team.

Time for Lakers to Go Small Against Jazz and Force Rudy Gobert to Bench

February 24, 2021 By LakerTom 2 Comments

Without Anthony Davis and Dennis Schroder, the Lakers are going to have change things up and go super small on offense and defense and play Rudy Gobert off the floor to have a chance to upset the Utah Jazz tonight.

It may be a long shot but going small is the best chance the Lakers have to neutralize Gobert and the Jazz’ second ranked defense and match up with the the cadre of lethal 3-point shooters that drive their top ranked offense. The best starting lineup for the Lakers against the Jazz tonight would be Talen Horton-Tucker and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope at guards, LeBron James and Kyle Kuzma at forwards, and Markieff Morris at small ball center.

Offensively, the need to spread the floor with 5-out sets and hit a high volume of threes to keep pace with the Jazz. They need five players who can make catch-and-shoot threes and attack the paint for drive-and-kick shots. They need to run to get easy baskets and be able to attack the paint and rim when Gobert is drawn out of the paint, which is why Morris should start.

Defensively, the Lakers’ lineups need to have the speed and athleticism to chase shooters off the 3-point line but still recover to rotate and help when the ball is moved or opposing players drive into the paint or attack the rim. That means five mobile athletic players who can chase shooters off the 3-point line and rotate quickly when the ball moves to prevent wide open shots, which is why I would start Morris at center instead of Gasol.

The Jazz have the best 3-point differential in the league, winning the 3-ball battle by 18 points per game, meaning they make 17 of 42 threes while holding opponents to 11 of 31 threes, a differential of 6 threes per game. The key to beating the Jazz is spreading the floor, stretching the defense, and outscoring the Jazz from deep to force Gobert out of the paint to open up lanes for LeBron and THT to attack the rim and win points in the paint.

The Lakers will need to shoot 45 threes again tonight and hit 40% of them to pull off a win. Hitting a hit volume of threes is going to be critical as it’s the only way to draw Rudy Gobert out of the paint or play him off the court. The Lakers almost want to lure the Jazz to give the ball to Gobert in the paint rather than rely on their league best 3-point shooting offense. Any time the Lakers get the Jazz to settle for 2 rather than 3 points will be a win.

Despite Gobert, the Jazz allow 48.3 points in the paint, which is 20th in the league, while only scoring 43.8 points in the paint. If the Lakers can keep Gobert out of the paint or play him off the floor, they can dominate inside. The thing about the Jazz is they are not unbeatable if you can get lure or force them to play outside their comfort zone. That’s not an easy thing to do and will require great shooting on offense and discipline on defense.

So while the Jazz are 9 point favorites, there’s a path to a Lakers upset victory tonight. Go super small on offense and defense, outscore the Jazz from deep, and then finish them off by attacking the paint and the rim.

Lakers Swarming ‘Small Ball’ Defense Creates Chaos & Dominates Nuggets

February 5, 2021 By LakerTom 5 Comments

Rallying behind the swarming ‘small ball’ defense that won their 17th championship, the Los Angeles Lakers held the Denver Nuggets to 35 points in the second half and under 100 points for the first time this season.

With a lock down second half, the Lakers’ top ranked defense dismantled the Nuggets’ offense, shut down Denver superstars Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, and turned a 12-point halftime deficit into a 114–93 blowout. Aggressively hedging, trapping, and doubling Jokic and Murray in the second half, the Lakers’ scrambling ‘small ball’ defense held Nikola to just 13 points on 6–16 shooting and Jamal to 20 points on 7–17 shooting.

After struggling over the last four games of a long road trip, the Lakers and LeBron James were ready to make a statement game against the Nuggets and Nikola Jokic, whom they beat 4–1 in last season’s conference semifinals. Fresh from breaking the red hot Utah Jazz’s 11-game win streak and buoyed by Nikola Jokic’s career best 47 points, the Nuggets were seeking a major revenge and redemption game against the world champion Lakers.

Unfortunately, the Lakers were the team to make a statement. After the high powered Nuggets’ offense scored 58 points in the first half, Frank Vogel turned to the Lakers’ ‘small ball’ defense that won the championship. Essentially benching starting center Marc Gasol 5 minutes into the second half, Vogel then unleashed the swarming, trapping, and doubling small ball defense the Lakers had surprised teams with to dominate the playoffs.

With the more mobile Anthony Davis and Montrezl Harrell playing center, the Lakers’ defense suffocated the Nuggets’ offense and created a chaos of turnovers and missed shots that triggered waves of Lakers fast break points. The killer was a 15–0 Lakers’ run to finish the 3rd quarter that transformed a 12-point Lakers halftime deficit into an 8-point Lakers lead that grew as big as 25 points as both teams emptied their benches to close the game.

The Lakers’ top ranked defense had a defensive rating of 96.9 for the game and 72.9 for the second half. The turnover fueled Lakers’ offense posted an offensive rating of 117.5 for the game and then 138.8 for the second half. LeBron James recorded his 94th career triple double and single handedly put an end to the budding Nikola Jokic for MVP campaign with a dominant 27-point, 10-rebound, and 10-assist totally MVP worthy performance.

Game balls to LeBron for his triple double, Dennis for his 21 points and inspiring loose ball double dive, THT for his 17-point, 3-rebound, 2-assist, and 3-steal masterpiece, and AD, Trezz, and Kuzma for energy at both ends. While the Lakers are regaining their championship mojo, there are still questions: Has Marc Gasol become this season’s JaVale McGee? When will Anthony Davis start to play like the second best player on the planet?

For now, the Lakers proved they can still ‘flip the switch’ into championship mode. The challenge will be to stay focused with big games looming this month against the Nuggets in Denver, the Nets in LA, and the Jazz in Utah.

Who’s Going To Be the Starting Point Guard of the Future for the Lakers?

January 29, 2021 By LakerTom 5 Comments

Nobody’s talking about it right now but there’s a good chance the question of who’s going to be the Lakers’ point guard for next season and the future could suddenly become a hot topic of discussion between fans and media.

While many have assumed the Lakers will ultimately reach an agreement on an extension with starting point guard Dennis Schroder, Rob Pelinka cannot ignore the growing interest from other teams in young Talen Horton-Tucker. With both slated to be free agents eligible for big raises this offseason and only one starting point guard position available, the Lakers may be forced to make a decision on who is going to be their point guard of the future.

27-year old Dennis Schroder is the Lakers’ starter at point guard and has demonstrated a lightning quick ability to blow by defenders to get to the rim, gravity as a 3-point shooter, and a toughness as a perimeter defender. 20-year old Talen Horton-Tucker has forced his way into Vogel’s rotation with his elite length, power, and ability to get to the basket and projects as a future two-way star whom some predict could start as soon as next season.

Right now, Schroder is averaging 30.6 minutes per game while Horton-Tucker is only playing 15.3 minutes per game. But when you compare their stats per 36 minutes, the 20-year old THT surprisingly has a slight edge. Considering the age difference, it’s easy to see why the Lakers and other teams are so high on Talen Horton-Tucker. A second year second round pick, THT is already matching the potential of last year’s 6MOY runner up.

In a perfect world, the Lakers would love to extend Schroder and re-sign Horton-Tucker to be his backup. With a little luck, that could happen. But How Schroder and Horton-Tucker play easily could change that dynamic. Right now, both have started to come back to earth after stretches of elite play so the jury is still out. Dennis has slumped after a red hot start to the season while THT has struggled to match his elite preseason play.

Schoder is currently making $16 million per year and will become an unrestricted free agent this offseason. If the Lakers want to keep him, they probably need to re-sign him to an extension starting around $20 million. Horton-Tucker is only earning $1.5 million right now and will become a restricted free agent this offseason. The Lakers have his Early Bird Rights so can offer him around the $10 million and match any other offers.

The problem is the Gilbert Arenas exception would allow another team to offer Horton-Tucker a 4-year contract with the first two years at $10 million and last two as high as max salary for an average of $20 million per year. While it’s doubtful any team is going to offer 20-year old Talen a 4-year $80 million contract, there are certainly going to be teams offering him a salary in the $15 to $17 million range in hopes the Lakers will not match the offer.

What seems more and more likely is the Lakers may be forced to choose between extending Schroder or matching what’s likely to be significant offer for Horton-Tucker. The Lakers may not be able to afford to keep them both. The incredible upside of 20-year old Talen Horton-Tucker whom some think has superstar potential could end up preventing the Lakers from offering Schroder an extension, especially if Dennis’ play continues to slump.

With that in mind, Frank Vogel is in a difficult position as it may not be in the Lakers’ best interest to give Horton-Tucker major minutes as that will only encourage other teams to try and steal him this offseason as a free agent. On the other hand, they don’t want to hold back or stunt the growth of a player who might develop into the superstar the Lakers desperately need to complement James and Davis and bridge the post LeBron transition.

While Frank Vogel faces a challenge finding minutes for young Horton-Tucker with six capable veteran guards ahead of him in the rotation, there’s no question the Lakers’ coaching staff view his role as a playmaking guard. With KCP and Kuzma already signed long term and Caruso and Horton-Tucker likely to added to the core next offseason, there’s not much playing time or cap space left to extend Dennis Schroder without a major trade.

If Talen Horton-Tucker continues to grow and develop over the next month, I wouldn’t be shocked to see the Lakers include Dennis Schroder in a major trade for a modern defensive center to upgrade the team’s rim protection. Whether that happens will depend on how well Talen and Dennis play but the Lakers’ need help at the center position and Talen Horton-Tucker is at some point going to become the team’s next starting point guard.

Lakers Trade Machine: Talen Horton-Tucker for Raptors’ Chris Boucher?

January 24, 2021 By LakerTom 2 Comments

Trying to find a trade for the champion Lakers that makes them better is a major challenge, especially since Kyle Kuzma’s extension included a poison pill provision and the rest of the trading chips are critical rotation pieces.

Frankly, I’m a huge fan of Talen Horton-Tucker and believe he’s going to be a future star. The idea the Lakers might consider trading him seems like a nightmare only a Jim Buss and Mitch Kupchak front office would consider. Honestly, I’m not even sure as I write this article whether it’s an idea I will endorse or reject by the time I publish it but I do think Chris Boucher could be a rare commodity that might be both an attainable and catalytic target.

It’s rare for teams trade promising young prospects like Talen Horton-Tucker and Chris Boucher but the Lakers need a young rim protector and the Raptors need a young star guard to replace 34-year old Kyle Lowry.

WHY SHOULD THE LAKERS TRADE HORTON-TUCKER?

The decision whether to trade Talen Horton-Tucker ultimately relies on two assumptions:(1) the Lakers do not need him to repeat as champions and (2) trading him could give the Lakers valuable front court depth and diversity. While Rob Pelinka and the front office have done a terrific job upgrading last season’s championship roster and Frank Vogel and his staff an equally superb job revamping the defense, the Lakers still lack elite rim protection.

There’s an argument the Lakers don’t need to add a third center or can sign one for the veteran minimum once the prorated annual salary falls below their hard cap but neither of those options are how you win championships. While the 20-year old Horton-Tucker has star potential, he’s still years away from that right now whereas the 28-year old Boucher is ready to contribute immediately at a position the Lakers desperately need a long term solution.

Boucher is enjoying a breakout season and is a leading candidate for Most Improved Player. He not only is third in the league with 2.3 blocked shots per game but is also shooting 48.3% from deep on 3.6 attempts per game. While it’s early, the 6′ 9,” 200 lb center is averaging 14.8 points, 6.5 boards, and 1.1 assists as the Raptors’ backup behind Aron Baynes and would give the Lakers a modern center who can stretch defenses and protect the rim.

While the Lakers would be giving up an elite prospect in 20-year old Talen Horton-Tucker for a relatively unproven 28-year center, Boucher could be the perfect long-term center to pair with Anthony Davis in a Lakers dynasty.

WHY SHOULD RAPTORS TRADE FOR HORTON-TUCKER?

With their championship run now in the rearview mirror, the Raptors have a decision to make before the March 25th trade deadline: Who’s going to replace Kyle Lowry and is Chris Boucher the answer as their starting center? Now that the Raptors have locked up Siakam, Anunoby, and VanVleet, they need to find a future star guard to replace 34-year old veteran free agent Lowry and a quality center to replace departed veterans Gasol and Ibaka.

Masai Ujiri has been a master at keeping the Raptors competitive while still building a talented young roster but his contract is up at the end of the year and there will be several franchises looking to lure him away from Toronto. Adding a guard with elite star potential like 20-year old Horton-Tucker to a nucleus of 26-year old Siakam, 23-year old Anunoby, and 26-year old VanVleet would give the Raptors a bright future and competitive present.

The Raptors were hopeful Aron Baynes would be able to fill the void left by losing Gasol and Ibaka to free agency but the results have been mixed. Baynes has played well defensively but has struggled shooting the three. While Boucher has played well, he’s undersized and seems destined to coming off the bench to back up Baynes and Anunoby at the five and four. After cutting Alex Len, the Raptors may be seeking more size at the five.

While Chris Boucher has developed into a valuable player off the bench, he does not project as a future starter for the Raptors. The time may be right to sell high and bring back a player who could a future star for the franchise.

Trading a budding star like Talen Horton-Tucker for a promising unproven undersized center like Chris Boucher is a gamble worth taking for a Lakers team looking to win multiple NBA championships before LeBron retires. Boucher’s an elite shot blocker who’s pogo stick hops would be a perfect fit as a small ball center alongside Anthony Davis at power forward and give the Lakers a pair of pterodactyls to stretch the floor and protect the rim.

The Lakers would have to include Wesley Matthews as salary filler for the trade to work but swapping two guards for a center would not only balance the roster but also allow Frank Vogel to finally settle on a 10-player rotation. While there likely would come a time when the Lakers might regret trading a future star like Talen Horton-Tucker, the hope is the three or four more championships won in the meantime would serve as fair compensation.

While I love the long term upside Talen Horton-Tucker represents, the immediate reward of adding a modern young center who is an elite shot blocker and 3-point shooter like Chris Boucher is worth the gamble.