2019 NBA Mock Draft: March is here
Talen Horton-Tucker. 14. player. 18. . F. Iowa State
This is the guy you need to be watching heading into the NCAA Tournament. Iowa State has a favorable draw with Ohio State in the first round, but they will need their young players to step up to make a run. Horton-Tucker is one of those youngsters, having just turned 18 around Thanksgiving.
That hasn’t stopped him from putting together a stellar statistical resume that could thrust him into the lottery if he’s not there already. Horton-Tucker has a 2.8 steal percentage and 2.7 block percentage as a 6-foot-4 forward and made some incredible off-the-bounce 3s this year. However, he made just 29 percent from NBA range and turned the ball over nearly as often as he got assists in the Cyclones’ up-tempo system. Iowa State’s incredibly young roster certainly didn’t maximize Horton-Tucker’s ability to impact winning, but his youth showed in a fair share of mistakes as well.
If we sort just by conference play, we see an improved version of the freshman. He shot 25-75 on 3s (remember it was a tough diet of triples for him) against the Big 12 even as the Cyclones’ season waned.
Horton-Tucker is hard to read, and he’s someone we’re going to dive in even more on as the draft approaches. There is also a decent likelihood that he becomes the latest interesting young prospect to return to Iowa State, perhaps joining teammate Tyrese Haliburton.
With the Celtics all but stuck in this spot with the Kings pick, Horton-Tucker makes sense as an upside pick to sell the Pelicans on in Anthony Davis negotiations.