Did Damien Wilkins call Myles Turner soft?

Myles Turner recently stated that an anonymous teammate called him soft earlier in the season, but he would not reveal who it was. Some evidence suggests it may have been Damien Wilkins.

After another monstrous game from Myles Turner on Monday, a media member asked him what, if anything, is causing him to play better. He attributed it to being inspired by a teammate calling him “soft”. The burning question; who was the teammate? After connecting some dots, the answer may be former Pacer Damien Wilkins.

“One of my teammates called me soft,” said Turner. Oladipo, in the background during the interaction, disagreed and engaged Turner from across the locker room. “Who called you soft?” said Victor. “Not you, bro” was Turner’s reply.

More from 8 Points, 9 Seconds

• 2 Studs, 1 dud from gut-wrenching Indiana Pacers loss to Charlotte Hornets
• Handing out early-season grades for Pacers’ Bruce Brown, Obi Toppin
• 3 positives, 2 negatives in Pacers In-Season Tournament win vs. Cavaliers
• 2 positives, 3 negatives from first week of Indiana Pacers basketball
• Should Isaiah Jackson’s days with Indiana Pacers be numbered?

This ruled out one suspect.

Wheat Hotchkiss of Pacers.com also reported that Turner confirmed it wasn’t Al Jefferson. In the next sentence, Hotchkiss says it wasn’t Lance Stephenson either and got Turner to confirm he won’t ever say who it was: “I’m not going to rat nobody out”.

Now, all we can do is speculate. We can rule out four of the Pacers; Turner, Oladipo, Jefferson, and Stephenson. But the rest of the roster is not off the hook. It could be any of them.

But Twitter user Michael Fortman remembered an interaction Turner had with a former Pacer that could provide a clue. That player? Damien Wilkins. Wilkins, who left the team in January, had dinner and conversed with Myles before departing the team. Mark Montieth of Pacers.com ran a story about it:

“I would have regretted not having that conversation had we not had it. It showed me the impact I have on guys, just having that conversation with him. I’m glad I was able to connect with him and influence something.” Wilkins told Montieth.

Could this interaction have been the one? Could Wilkins have called Turner “soft” (or some synonym) during their dinner?

Wilkins went on to say more. Fortman had the whole quote on Twitter, and that helped connect the pieces:

Wilkins references “influencing something in him”. This conversation occurred in early January. Myles began his run of stellar play in late January. Is it possible that Wilkins instilled something in Turner that resonated with him for a whole month, and ultimately led him to be more aggressive?

It is certainly possible. Damien Wilkins was a respected vet who had tons of influence on the Pacers younger guys. Maybe Wilkins, as a parting gift to the Pacers, let Turner know he needs to be more aggressive. And it is allowing Myles to blossom.

Next: Volatile Chemistry: Why last season’s Indiana Pacers underachieved

We can never say for sure what was discussed at the dinner that Damien Wilkins and Myles Turner shared, and we can’t know if this is where Turner was called soft. However, there are enough connections in this stories that it could be possible. Perhaps Wilkins used his veteran know-how to give Turner the boost he needed to become the player he is capable of being. Either way, thank you, Mr. Wilkins.