Why Lakers Cannot Extend the Contract of Wonderkid Talen Horton Tucker
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The Los Angeles Lakers were led by LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and multiple veterans to their 17th NBA championship. They had an impressive roster, with ultimate unique elements combining to deliver the championship.
Ahead of the start of the 2020-21 season, the NBA pre-season has already started. The Lakers played their first game against city rivals LA Clippers and defeated them 87-81.
There was one player who stood out of the rest. He was the 46th pick of the 2019 draft: Talen Horton Tucker. Tucker scored 19 points and 9 rebounds, making him the standout player of the game.
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Many Lakers fans are demanding the team to extend Tucker’s contract. But with an existing two-year contract, that would not be possible. Lakers insider, Harrison Faigen explained in his latest tweet.
For those asking, the Lakers cannot extend Talen Horton-Tucker because you can’t extend a two-year contract. The Lakers can make him a restricted free agent though with a $1.7 mil qualifying offer this summer, so if he shows something, they can keep him.
— Preseason Faigen (@hmfaigen) December 13, 2020
Multiple Lakers teammates, including LeBron James lauded the 20-year-old. It’s early days, but if Tucker continues to perform like this, he can play a key role for the Lakers.
What are the implications on Lakers’ roster if he continues to impress?
One cannot say that Tucker is already a star with this one game. But if he does continue this run of form, he will have a much bigger role than last season.
Last season he only played six games. Two of them coming against the Houston Rockets in the playoffs. Tucker has shown his versatility on the floor with his impeccable wing span of 7’1 making him an able rebounder.
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If he continues to perform, he will be an enormous threat to Kyle Kuzma. Kuzma was the second best scorer for the Lakers in the pre-season game. He was expected to lead the side.
But he let a 20-year-old Tucker dominate the game. Kuzma already has too much pressure on him after a disappointing 2019-20 season.
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With Tucker performing, there will be added pressure on Kuz. He now has to step up and impress Rob Pelinka and the Lakers front office to offer him a big money contract extension.
As for Tucker, this performance has increased his value enormously and everyone is expecting great things from the 20-year-old. He will surely be a great bench player for them, if he maintains this form.
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