After only two preseason games of the new season, second-year man Talen Horton-Tucker has emerged as the Los Angeles Lakers’ newest darling.
He scored 33 points on 11-of-17 shooting from the field on Sunday, and superstar teammate LeBron James was beyond thrilled.
After Talen Horton-Tucker drained another 3 to give him 31 points and counting, LeBron James got up from the bench and yelled "Stop it! Stop it!" in disbelief and then took off his mask and spiked it on his seat to punctuate his pleasure with the 2nd year player.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) December 14, 2020
After the contest, James also went on social media and warned the rest of the NBA about the second-round draft choice.
Horton-Tucker showed off pretty much every aspect of his game in the Lakers’ 131-106 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.
He hit four of his five 3-point attempts, grabbed 10 rebounds, dished out four assists and got four steals.
Last season as a rookie, Horton-Tucker barely played, but in the bubble, he got some spot duty and started to show flashes of what he is capable of.
Assuming that what he’s shown lately is no fluke, the Lakers will possess a very deep roster with him, guards Dennis Schroder, Alex Caruso and Wesley Matthews, big man Montrezl Harrell and forward Kyle Kuzma.
Since novel coronavirus infections across the league are inevitable throughout the season, the Lakers are now fully locked and loaded for a run at back-to-back NBA championships.
