Former Los Angeles Lakers draft darling Talen Horton-Tucker just officially signed on board with Turkish club Fenerbahce for the upcoming season. Horton-Tucker was eventually traded to the Utah Jazz, but LA hung onto him for too long, and he didn’t end up panning out in the NBA.
Now, it looks like Horton-Tucker’s career in the league could be over, or at least, he’ll have to fight to get another chance. Unfortunately, the Lakers mismanaged Horton-Tucker’s trade value when he was in town, and he was unable to live up to their sky-high expectations. After just six NBA seasons, Horton-Tucker is officially out of the league.
He went from next-up on the Lakers to overseas in a flash.
What happened with Talen Horton-Tucker?
When Horton-Tucker first entered the NBA as the Lakers’ second-round pick in 2019, he created some hype. He played well in the G League, showed some signs of quality play in the NBA, and looked like he could become a regular part of LA’s rotation.
But his three-point shot never came around, and the other parts of his game didn’t do nearly enough to overshadow that downside.
LA famously refused to include him in a trade for then-Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry back in 2021, and at that point in time, Lowry could have been a great fit next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Instead, Lowry got traded to the Miami Heat, and the Lakers extended Horton-Tucker. But roughly one year later, Horton-Tucker was on the move anyway, as LA traded him and Stanley Johnson to the Utah Jazz for Patrick Beverley. Needless to say, they should have managed his value better.
From there, Horton-Tucker spent two years in Utah before joining the Chicago Bulls for last season. But as the years went on, so did Horton-Tucker’s minutes, all culminating in his NBA exit.
For someone who once presented himself as a lanky defender who could act as a secondary playmaker on offense, Horton-Tucker quickly flailed into NBA irrelevance. He couldn’t even crack the regular rotation on last year’s Chicago team, playing just 12.5 minutes per game in 58 appearances.
And despite still being just 24 years old, Horton-Tucker couldn’t even find a landing spot for NBA training camp. That’s how far his value has fallen in six quick years.
There’s a chance he could be back in the NBA in the coming seasons, but for now, it looks like the fight to keep his league dreams alive has come to a bitter end.