“Talen Horton-Tucker will be a prize free agent”: Speculation suggests that Mavericks, Knicks could pursue Lakers guard and LeBron James’ protege in the offseason

Lakers guard Talen Horton-Tucker will be the subject of intense speculation over the course of the next offseason as a free agent.

Selected in the second round with the 46th pick, Horton-Tucker does not have a guaranteed contract yet. The Lakers have a deep guard rotation. Wesley Matthews, Dennis Schroder, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Alex Caruso are all ahead of him in the pecking order.

In the limited minutes that he’s played over the course of 11 games, THT has not disappointed. The guard shows the ability to get to the rim at will. He’s improving as a shooter, and is a pretty good decision-maker. The ball does not stop in his hands – he has great instincts on making the right play.

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Horton-Tucker can expect to get a larger role as the season goes on. The Lakers have already got a pretty good hold on the top seed. Their dominance thus far suggests that there will be significant garbage time minutes to be had.

Talen Horton-Tucker has several teams interested in him

Horton-Tucker built his hype on the back of an exceptional preseason campaign for the Lakers. Granted an extended run of minutes for the first time in his career, THT took full advantage. He averaged 20+ points through 4 games and impressed viewers from all quarters.

LeBron James keeps showering the praise on the Iowa State one-and-done prospect in press conferences. He says THT has a mature head on his capable shoulders, as he’s demonstrated on several occasions. All of this only serves to fan free agent speculation.

Heavy.com reports that the likes of Dallas, Cleveland and the Knicks are all preparing to throw their hat in the ring for him.

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THT projects as a capable producer, and would really benefit playing on a team like the OKC Thunder with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luguentz Dort.