1 surprising Lakers player could be out of rotation next season?

Apr. 7, 2012; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Darvin Ham against the Phoenix Suns at the US Airways Center. The Suns defeated the Lakers 125-105. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

It looks like Darvin Ham will not be playing around next season.

Jovan Buha of The Athletic said this week on the “Lakers Nation Podcast” that swingman Talen Horton-Tucker could potentially be outside the Los Angeles Lakers’ rotation in the 2022-23 campaign. Buha notes that Ham, the team’s new head coach, has “rarely” mentioned Horton-Tucker or any role Horton-Tucker might have next year, as transcribed by Lakers Twitter figure @RichStapless. Buha also says that Lakers figures he has personally spoken to have seldom brought up Horton-Tucker as well.

That is a fairly surprising development since it wasn’t long ago that Horton-Tucker was being hyped up as the Lakers’ next great young player. Still only 21, Horton-Tucker is also represented by Klutch Sports, the same agency that represents LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and many other Lakers.

But Horton-Tucker was bad last year to put it kindly. He shot a smelly 41.6 percent from the field (with an even smellier 26.9 percent from three) and regressed on the defensive end as well.

Ham, who will be entering his first year as an NBA head coach, has already shown that he is not afraid to make tough decisions, no matter the player. Booting Horton-Tucker from the rotation next season could continue on that trend.