The Los Angeles Lakers have officially extended the qualifying offer to Talen Horton-Tucker, keeping him a restricted free agent.
Horton-Tucker, 20, is slated to enter the free-agent market in August as his two-year contract will expire.
The Lakers drafted Horton-Tucker with the 46th overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft, and he broke into the rotation this season with more minutes.
After a strong preseason showing that caught many eyes, Horton-Tucker slowly inserted himself as a backup ball-handling option.
At 6’4″ with a 7’1″ wingspan, Horton-Tucker relentlessly attacked the rim when he had a lane and was one of the few players off the bench who could create his own shot.
Horton-Tucker still has plenty of room to improve, especially regarding his perimeter shooting, off-the-bounce passing and overall defense, but he’s the best young asset the Lakers have, which is why they extended the qualifying offer, via Shams Charania of The Athletic:
The qualifying offer is worth just over $1.8 million. The Lakers can match any offer teams submit for the promising young guard by giving Horton-Tucker the offer. The deadline to extend the offer was July 31.
If the Lakers didn’t extend the offer, Horton-Tucker would’ve become an unrestricted free agent and could sign with any team that submitted an offer.
Free agency begins on Aug. 2, and the Lakers are slated to have over 10 free agents on the roster.