Los Angeles Lakers: 3 reasons Talen Horton-Tucker was a good pick
By Amaar Burton
3. LeBron James believes in him
Whether true or not, one of the narratives surrounding LeBron James is that he has little patience for young, inexperienced players who are not ready to play at a championship level.
During the Lakers’ disappointing 2018-19 season, rumors persisted that LeBron was involved in trying to trade away the bulk of L.A.’s young core for a veteran star like Davis. It was also reported that veteran Rajon Rondo called a team meeting to address LeBron’s negative body language and reactions to his young teammates’ mistakes.
LeBron’s perceived preference for experienced teammates over rookies was one reason why it seemed so unlikely that the Lakers would actually use their No. 4 draft pick to add a rookie to the roster when they could instead use the pick to help bring in a known commodity.
The rookie the Lakers have brought in, however, does appear to have at least an initial co-sign from LeBron. Horton-Tucker is signed to Klutch Sports Group, which is of course the agency led by LeBron’s friend and agent Rich Paul.
Talen Horton-Tucker says he didn’t work out for the Lakers and didn’t even meet with them at the combine before being picked by them tonight. As a fellow Klutch Sports client he says he’s already met with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, however.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) June 21, 2019
While it’s not like LeBron is personally choosing Klutch Sports’ clients, it would be safe to assume that the agency isn’t in business with anyone whose game LeBron hates.
If LeBron’s righthand man sees something in Horton-Tucker that he likes and is now working in Horton-Tucker’s best interest, that can only bode well for the rookie as he looks to establish himself with the Lakers.