This offseason is quieter than last summer for the Los Angeles Lakers as they had a flurry of free agent signings that included Taurean Prince. He signed for the bi-annual exception worth up to $4.5 million, which was considered a bargain for a player like the 3-and-D forward.
Coming off a solid year with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Prince was the perfect complementary piece next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis because of his size on the wing as a defender and his ability to knock down open 3-pointers. Prince also had familiarity with former head coach Darvin Ham dating back to their time together with the Atlanta Hawks, so there was more optimism that the forward would get off to a good start.
Prince got the nod as a starter to begin the 2023-24 season and performed well, though there were enough moments to suggest that he was being asked to do too much. Offensively, Prince is best used as a spot-up shooter or cutter, but there were too many possessions where he was forced to try to create for himself.
Defensively, Prince held up well against bigger forwards but struggled guarding quicker players. Eventually, Ham made the move to bench Prince in favor of Rui Hachimura and the team took off from there.
Although Prince preferred to be a starter, he was much more effective off the bench as he could focus solely on outside shooting and defense.
The veteran forward turned in a fine season with the Lakers, averaging 8.9 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.5 assists. Perhaps his most underrated quality, though, was his availability as he appeared in 78 regular season games.
2023-24 Highlight
Taurean Prince made his mark quickly into the 2023-24 season as he looked comfortable launching whenever he got a touch. He scored a season-high 20 points in a loss to the Sacramento Kings, taking 17 field goal attempts and knocking down seven of them.
However, his best game of the season was arguably down the stretch with the Lakers fighting for a playoff spot. Los Angeles took on the Cleveland Cavaliers and Prince was a key contributor off the bench, dropping 18 points including four 3-pointers.
2024-25 Outlook
While Prince was open to a return with the Lakers, he ultimately signed a one-year deal with the Milwaukee Bucks. The move was expected as Prince was going to lose minutes to Max Christie and likely Dalton Knecht, but will have more of a role with the Bucks. It also reunites him with Ham, who is now an assistant coach with Milwaukee.
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