Former Iowa State Basketball Star Looks to Continue Career Overseas

A former Iowa State basketball star, who made it to the NBA after being selected by the Los Angeles Lakers in the second round, will now likely be taking his talents overseas to continue his career.

Guard/forward Talen Horton-Tucker has had a predictably choppy start to his NBA career, as most second round picks do. Tucker was selected 46th overall by the Los Angeles Lakers in 2019 after spending one year at Iowa State where he averaged 11.8 points-per-game. Horton-Tucker spent three years with the Lakers, serving as a role player, most notably during the Lakers' championship run during the 2019 season.

READ MORE: NBA Star Returns to Wisconsin High School with Huge Donation

More Than a Change of Scenery — A Change of Country:

Per BasketNews.com, Talen Horton-Tucker is finalizing a contract with the Turkish basketball club known as Fenerbahce. According to the report, Horton-Tucker holds out hope that he will sign with an NBA team before the start of the upcoming season (October 21st), but will play with Fenerbahce if no such deal materializes.

In 2022, Horton-Tucker was traded to the Utah Jazz, where he spent two seasons in the muck of a team rebuilding. From there, he signed with the Chicago Bulls last season, where he played in 58 games and averaged 6.8 points-per-game.

Horton-Tucker's Deal Isn't Final...Yet:

Horton-Tucker is Also a Chicago Native:

Horton-Tucker's deal with the Turkish basketball club is in place, but it has yet to be completed as he is awaiting other NBA opportunities. Per BasketNews, a final decision on his part is set to be made in the next few days.

Horton-Tucker grew up in Chicago and played basketball at the prestigious Simeon Career Academy High School before committing to Iowa State for a season. Since then, however, he has been a role player/fringe roster player.

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I've always wanted to ask NBA players who have had to go overseas to continue their careers what exactly that's like. Imagine if opportunities for your job were so thin that you had to uproot and move to a place like Greece, Turkey, China, or Istanbul in order to do what you knew best. That's the reality for hundreds of American-born players.

Read more about Talen Horton-Tucker's potential move to Turkey on BasketNews' website.