NBA Comparison: Talen Horton-Tucker

Strengths: Has great size for a wing at 6’6”, 205 lbs and a massive 7-foot wingspan, and 8’9″ standing reach … Has excellent versatility with length on the defensive end and playmaking ability on the offensive side … Very promising lefty shooter with good form … Possesses good footwork when catching the ball on the move, allowing him to get into an on-balance shooting motion very quickly …  Has a good base on his jumper both off the bounce and off the catch and shoot … Very good mid range pull-up game off of one dribble, two dribbles, and dribble moves … Excellent elevation on jumpers and inside finishes … Will take what defenses give him and is a true 3 level scorer … Is a solid scorer, averaging 16 points per contest as a sophomore … Shot 34.4% from three last season. If he gets a step on a defender, it becomes very tough to stop him because he has so many ways to score. Plays at a slower pace when he has the ball in his hands, but is good at finding driving lanes … Excellent on ball defender and utilizes his length well to play passing lanes … A wing with a +8 inch wingspan 7’0.5 to his barefoot height 6’4.5) gives him incredible length to be disruptive as a ball handler and rebounder … Had just a 1-to-1 A/TO ratio but shows very good vision and passing skills (3.1 APG) … While he didn’t prove to be a great defender in college, the potential (with great length) is there if he dedicates himself on that end …

Weaknesses: Lacks great fluidity … While he’s more athletic than he appears, his movements for a 6’6 wing are not exactly graceful … Has serious consistency / motor issues – doesn’t play hard consistently. Needs refinement using screens – doesn’t always maximize his advantage coming off of them, which allows defenders to recover and stop him from getting open … Needs to become better at moving without the ball and breaking free of defenders by setting them up with timing on screens … Can be slow to make a decision, often causing him to over-dribble while looking for a driving lane and stagnating the offense … Can get separated from his man when playing off-ball defense … Lacks ideal defensive awareness – gets tunnel vision focusing on his man … lacks a great first step … Lacks the lateral quickness to contain his man off the bounce and can struggle when put in ball screen actions … Part of his defensive struggles are due to his defensive posture – his legs don’t bend enough and he bends too much at the waist, resulting in a center of gravity too far in front of him … Often doesn’t hustle back in defensive transition … Lacks anticipatory skills – he needs to see something happen before he’s comfortable making a decision … Doesn’t cut with urgency offensively and can find himself standing around waiting to get the ball. Averaged 3.1 turnovers to 3.1 assists as a sophomore…. 3.1 turnovers per game signal a need to improve upon his ball handling and decision making … Turns 22 at the end of July making him an older sophomore …

Outlook: Will need to time to get up to speed at the next level, so landing in a good situation will be paramount … Just a sophomore, Stewart made a surprising decision to leave is name in the draft after not participating in the NBA Draft Combine … Struggled to earn an invite to the NBA Combine with a subpar performance at the G-League combine … A potential late bloomer, Stewart could become a good NBA prospect because of his versatility and ability to put the ball in the basket, but he simply doesn’t excel in enough other aspects to stand out amongst the other prospects right now … He’s a scorer and not much else at this stage of his career. He needs to improve his ability to anticipate what is happening around him on the court, his defensive intensity, his playmaking, and his hustle in order to make t to the next level. All of those aspects can be improved upon with work, and he made a significant jump from his freshman year to his sophomore year, so it is very possible he makes a similar jump for his junior year. While he’s a talented scorer, he’s not a high enough level scorer to look past his other deficiencies. However, if he builds out his game to be about more than being a ball-dominant scorer, he could find himself making an NBA roster in the near future …

Notes: Measured: 6’4.5 barefoot, 6’6 in shoes, 204.4 lbs, 8’9″ standing reach and 7’0.5″ wingspan … Native of Grace, MS …

Eric Yearian 7/17/21