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The Utah Jazz acquired Talen Horton-Tucker in the offseason, hoping he’d finally break out and become the star some thought he’d be.
That wasn’t the case, and the former Lakers guard struggled to establish himself as a steady contributor to their rotation.
Even so, as expected, he didn’t hesitate to pick up his player option worth $11 million for the upcoming campaign, according to his agent Rich Paul and Brian Windhorst of ESPN.
Talen Horton-Tucker is opting into his $11 million deal with the Utah Jazz for next season, agent Rich Paul says
— Brian Windhorst (@WindhorstESPN) June 28, 2023
The 6-foot-4 guard made 65 appearances for the Jazz last season, including 20 starts.
He averaged 10.7 points and 3.8 assists per game on roughly 41% from the floor and a dreadful 28% from beyond the arc.
Not so long ago, the Lakers refused to trade him for multiple potential targets, hoping he’d become an elite scorer.
He showed glimpses of greatness in limited minutes but failed to step up when given a bigger opportunity to showcase his skills.
As things stand out now, it doesn’t seem like Horton-Tucker will ever take that leap forward, as he couldn’t even make the most of his touches playing for a struggling, rebuilding, younger team.
One would think that taking that pressure off being next in line for the Lakers would help him thrive and be more comfortable on the court, but that wasn’t the case.
Then again, he’s still young, so there’s still a slim chance he turns out to be good, and he’ll now have the last chance to prove his worth and earn a big contract after this season, even if it’s in a Sixth Man role.
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