Indiana Pacers: Predicting individual stats for the starting lineup next season

Indiana Pacers Starting C: Myles Turner

At first glance, you’d think that Myles Turner is a weak link on offense for the Indiana Pacers in the starting lineup with his modest offensive numbers, but he’s the glue that keeps everything in place in the Blue and Gold’s engine. Easily the team’s best defender, the DPOY candidate’s value for the team can never be understated.

The world’s best shot blocker once again led the league in shots swatted per game with 3.4 per contest. That’s a monstrous figure that cements Turner as a menacing presence on defense. Had he been healthier this season, he would’ve easily cracked the All-Defensive teams and garner significant DPOY clout.

As long as Turner is around in Indy on his shot blocking escapades, he will anchor the team on defense while supplying enough secondary scoring and much-needed frontcourt spacing on offense. While his chances to score will be even lesser with a fully healthy roster, it’s not his niche anyway, and stopping the opposition will be his prime duty. Hopefully though, his rebounding improves.

Projected 2021-22 stats: 31.4 MPG, 12.4 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 3.1 BPG on 48.2/36.3/79.4 shooting