Talen Horton-Tucker injury update: Here’s what we know about the LA Lakers’ emerging star’s latest physical setback
With the start of the 2021-22 NBA season just around the corner, the Los Angeles Lakers are dealing with some injury news already. It was announced today that Talen Horton-Tucker will undergo surgery after suffering a torn ligament in his right thumb. The soon-to-be 21-year-old was expected to become an important part of the Lakers rotation this year with his versatility to play multiple positions.
Lakers guard Talen Horton-Tucker has a torn ligament in his right thumb and will undergo surgery, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
Throughout the offseason, there have been plenty of jokes circulating about the Lakers when it comes to the age of the roster. The harsh reality of these comedic efforts has been to point out a developing truth. The only thing that stands in the way of the Lakers this year is their health. With a number of veteran players on the roster, this L.A. team needs to make sure they can keep themselves on the court and away from the trainers table. One of the youngest players on the roster, Talen Horton-Tucker was expected to potentially turn into a valuable asset in the rotation. The buzz had been growing for Horton-Tucker throughout camp, and it seemed as if the Lakers were going to use his versatility to help out with a number of positions off the bench.
It was announced last week that veteran wing Trevor Ariza is expected to miss eight weeks after undergoing ankle surgery. With the Talen Horton-Tucker news, that now has the Lakers missing two wings from their bench rotation. That could eventually lead to some extended minutes from veteran scorer Carmelo Anthony, although the Lakers could potentially look to try to add another piece in free agency if needed.
How Long Will Talen Horton-Tucker be out?
The number of games that Lakers wing Talen Horton-Tucker is expected to miss could vary. With most athletes, teams will want to see how his body recovers from surgery and recovery time. This has been an injury that has popped up a number of times throughout the NBA recently. As pointed out below, players such as Clint Capela, Chris Paul, and Marcus Smart returned from a similar situation after missing an average of 15 games.
Re: Horton-Tucker: Average lost time following surgery for an in-season ligament tear of the thumb is 26 games (~7 weeks) though the number has improved in recent seasons. Capela, CP3, and Marcus Smart all returned after missing an average of 15 games.
For this Lakers team, they know that the season is going to be a "marathon." Injuries happen to NBA teams all the time, and it would be foolish to think that a team won't deal with some sort of injury bug throughout the year. With this Lakers team, they hope that they can maintain the course and avoid some serious injuries. If the worst thing that happens is that the Lakers miss some of their bench pieces for the early portion of the season, then so be it. For a team that knows that injuries are the only thing that stand in their way, they hope that this isn't the start of an ugly trend.