If the Los Angeles Lakers could go back and re-do the No. 46 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, chances are these three prospects would have stoked more interest than Talen Horton-Tucker.
Let’s start this off by stating that the Los Angeles Lakers didn’t necessarily make a mistake when they selected Talen Horton-Tucker with the No. 46 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft. With that said, could they have used said pick in a more productive manner? Probably.
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With that in mind, I’ve decided to take a look at a few prospects the Lakers could have taken instead of Horton-Tucker. Now obviously these options are based on my opinions and biases. You may not be as high on some of the names on this list as myself, and that’s fine.
You know where the door is if you’re not willing to consider someone else’s musings on the Lakers.
Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s get down to brass tacks — pinpointing alternative options with the No. 46 overall selection.
Keep in mind that, at that point in the draft, pickings were slim. Most of the premier talent was off the board long ago.
And yet, as we’ve seen in the past, there are gems out there waiting to be uncovered. Isaiah Thomas (No. 60 overall) and Nikola Jokic (No. 41) are a few examples that come to mind.
That’s not to say there’s a Thomas or Jokic in this draft class. But it doesn’t hurt to at least consider the possibility that Horton-Tucker wasn’t the best option available at that point in the draft, especially considering the Lakers’ sudden logjam at the guard spots.
So let’s take a gander at a few prospects Los Angeles should have drafted instead.