Tony Allen reveals the precise moment he knew Talen Horton-Tucker was the real deal

Los Angeles Lakers youngster Talen Horton-Tucker impressed many in the basketball world in his first two preseason games of the new NBA season.

Although Horton-Tucker seemingly came out of nowhere, former NBA player Tony Allen has known since last season that the second-round draft pick was special.

“I saw him in the G League. … He killed it,” said Allen. “He had like 29 at halftime. I’m like, ‘He with us?’ That man looked at me and said, ‘I don’t even belong down here.’ He told me that. He said, ‘I don’t belong in no G League. I don’t belong down here.’ Hit a three next play down. Bam. Looked dead at me. I said, ‘That boy real!’ I say, ‘He real.’”

Lakers fans will probably remember Allen as a member of the Boston Celtics teams that battled L.A. in the NBA Finals in 2008 and 2010.

After Allen’s playing career ended in 2018, he moved on to become a player development coach for the Memphis Hustle, the Memphis Grizzlies’ G League affiliate.

Horton-Tucker has already come a long way from the player who barely played during the 2019-20 regular season.

When the campaign resumed in the Orlando, Fla. bubble, Horton-Tucker started getting spot duty during the playoffs and flashed an offensive skill set that few players can boast.

Now, it looks as though he’s making a serious claim to get substantial playing time in the 2020-21 campaign.