Lost in the discussions of how to find minutes on a championship Lakers team ten deep with proven talented players has been the more important question of what is the position Talen Horton-Tucker is best suited to play?
I think we saw the answer to that question the last three preseason games where Horton-Tucker averaged 23.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 2.7 steals in 34.4 minutes at point guard while shooting 53.3/45.5/89.5%. While it’s foolish to overreact to a few preseason games, what we saw in those games was exactly what the Lakers coaches and players have seen from this kid in the bubble, during the playoffs, and in practice every day.
The first time I heard the Lakers were considering Talen Horton-Tucker as the backup point guard was back in November 2019 in a YouTube stream by Eric Pincus Making Sense of the Los Angeles Lakers’ Hard Cap Moves. While discussing the Lakers depth chart for the season, Pincus said the coaches were high on THT, believed he would become part of the rotation, and could even challenge Alex Caruso for the backup point guard role
The reason Talen is even on the Lakers roster is LeBron James. “I saw him about three and half, four years ago,” James said of Horton-Tucker. “I was watching a high school basketball game and I happened to catch Simeon playing. And I told our agent at the time — it’s now Talen’s agent, Rich Paul — that he needs to take a look at this kid Talen Horton-Tucker that’s at Simeon. I think the kid is super talented. This was like four years ago.
What transpired after that may be a key moment in Lakers history as on June 20, 2019, the Lakers traded their 2020 second round pick and $2.2 million to the Orlando Magic to take Talen with the 46th pick in the draft. After spending most of his rookie year in the G-League and only playing in 2 regular season games with the Lakers, Talen got a chance to play in two second round playoff games in the bubble against the Rockets and excelled.
Thrown into the pressure cooker of the bubble playoffs, Horton-Tucker averaged 7.0 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 1.0 steals in 8.5 minutes per game, giving the Lakers a glimpse of what he was capable of doing at 19-years old. The most telling comment about what the Lakers think about Talen Horton-Tucker’s potential was what one of their coaches said to LA Times writer Dan Woike while watching him practice during the playoffs in the bubble.
I was even more impressed watching Talen dominate the second half and lead the Lakers to a 3rd straight preseason win last night rebounding from a shaky first half off the bench instead of starting like in the first two games. After missing his only two 3-point attempts in the first half, Talen did what great players do. He put his head down and used his size and length to attack the paint, making several highlight reel layups and dishes in traffic.
While it may be awhile before he forces himself into the starting lineup, there’s no question Talen Horton-Tucker has earned a role in the Lakers’ rotation as the team’s backup point guard when LeBron’s not on the floor. While he’s capable of contributing off the ball, Talen’s handle and ability to get into the paint and make plays for himself and teammates and his upside as an elite wing defender are exactly what the Lakers need to repeat.
It almost unfair that a championship team as deep and talented as the Lakers should find a transcendent young star like Talen Horton-Tucker but like LeBron James said, “This kid is flat out SPECIAL! Mark my words.”
With a shortened offseason and a limited preseason, you would have thought it would be near impossible for a player to have a break out like Talen Horton-Tucker has had. But thanks to load management for LeBron and AD and the departure of Rajon Rondo, THT was given a chance to shine and glow radioactive is what he has done with that chance. I don’t think there is any question he has locked up the backup point guard role for the Lakers and will get an opportunity to start proving he deserves to be a starter down the road, either at the 1 or 2, which is a major plus for the already ten player deep Los Angeles Lakers.
Of course, the glass drainers will rapidly work to empty the glass every time Talen fills it by reminding you this is just preseason but if you’ve been following the inside scoop around THT, you know there’s a lot of fire where there’s been smoke and Talen’s ascension has been building since the bubble and the playoffs. We may as fans been surprised but nobody on the Lakers coaching staff or team are surprised by what they’re seeing from the kid. They know he’s legit and is going to be a star for the team in the not to distant future. Like LeBron said, mark his words, This kid is special. So stop draining the glass and appreciate a Lakers future where the glass and talent are overflowing. Talen Horton-Tucker is going to be a Lakers star.
I see THT as more of a back up 2-3 and even 4 on this team. Caruso and even Cook will hold down more backup guard duties. The fact is that THT does still have a lot to prove. That’s not draining a glass of hope but rather pairing that glass with a tasty plate of reality. Outside of AD and LBJ, Gasol and maybe KCP at this point, all the Lakers have something to prove. Can Schroder start on a playoff team? Can Trezz repeat his 6th MotY campaign? Can Caruso replicate his Swiss Army season from last year and maybe even take it up a notch? Can Kuzma take the leap we’ve been looking for 3 years and counting? Plenty of questions to go around and asking a question doesn’t mean you don’t support or hope the player does well it means that this doesn’t unfold on paper or in our minds. it plays out on the court.
So, yes, I have questions as to how well THT does in the regular season. We’ve seen him do well against two teams, three if you want to count Houston for 2 games in the playoffs which I do. There are bunch of teams, coaches and players he needs to prove himself against and that’s how it is for just about every player in the league. He’s not getting singled out he’s reached an exciting level as a player, the level where he’s talked about at all. They don’t all get to this level. He needs to show some consistency and he’ll need to make some adjustments once he gets scouted better. That’s all coming in the next few weeks or so.
I can be excited for his development and the fact that he did as much as he possibly could with his opportunity and still wonder if it’s sustainable over a 70-80+ game slog that is the regular season and then to keep it up into the playoffs. I wonder that about roughly 85% of our team and I would imagine most fans do in regards to their favorite teams, as well.