The Los Angeles Lakers are the oldest team remaining in the NBA bubble, according to average age estimates, that have the Lakers median age at 28.3 years old. 19-year old rookie Talen Horton-Tucker is an extreme outlier in comparison to the rest of the team. Still, he’s clearly a part of what the Lakers are building and he also had a major role in the celebration of Anthony Davis’ game-winner, with him getting run over by a jubilant Davis in the immediate aftermath of the shot.
But Horton-Tucker getting run over by Davis may not be the funniest thing involving him inside the bubble, hanging out with his much older teammates. Horton-Tucker also makes time to hang out with the Lakers veterans, but since he’s not of drinking age, he’s unable to take advantage of the elite wine they have at their disposal, instead he’s settling for orange juice, according to a new piece on Horton-Tucker from Marc Spears of ESPN’s The Undefeated.
“They drink a lot of wine. I don’t drink that. But I can still be around,” Horton-Tucker said. “They can drink their wine and give me an orange juice. I just like sitting around, listening and taking anything in. It can be from basketball to video games. I’m a sponge with everybody.”
Horton-Tucker had some minutes in the Houston series, but it doesn’t look like he will have much of a role in the Lakers’ current series against Denver. But if the Lakers make the Finals, there’s a chance he might get a chance against two teams loaded on the perimeter, in Miami or Boston.
