Ever since Myles Turner seemingly pitched himself in a potential trade with the Los Angeles Lakers, the Indiana Pacers big man’s window to stay with the only franchise he’s ever known has taken an unofficial, yet likely full-blown stop. Now, his exit from the team could very well be a matter of inevitability at this juncture.
Looking at all the circumstances, the Lakers seem to be the most likely destination for the big man. After all, with the Pacers intent on developing their young roster, the team has made it clear that they are demanding draft capital in return, and LA is the one club with the weakest hold on any leverage, as their need for Turner in order to bolster their win-now approach greatly outweighs a future that is quite distant still.
The Indiana Pacers are likely to trade Myles Turner one way or the other
While a Turner trade is indeed likely, the Pacers are not yielders by nature—any attempt on the part of the Lakers to avail themselves of any semblance of a discount could be pretty lethal to trade talks. After all, Indiana could easily move onto another willing buyer and extract other assets in return.
With all those in consideration, let’s zoom in a bit on these two non-Lakers Myles Turner trade proposals from Bleacher Report and grade them accordingly.
Will landing another big man in return for Myles Turner make sense for the Indiana Pacers?
This is definitely not the let’s-squeeze-a-draft-pick-somehow deal that the Indiana Pacers are envisioning to garner for Myles Turner. If anything, this is a proposal that only seeks to better the currently undermanned, and at times, underwhelming LA Clippers.
But that is just the non-visceral glimpse. Of course, Turner carries with him a red flag (banner even) as a glaringly obvious flight risk. Any team hoping to trade for him will essentially be pursuing a rental. Hence, if only Myles is on the table and the Lakers are not the team on the opposite panel, a first-round pick is simply a shard of utter fantasy.
Ivica Zubac is a pretty solid center (9.1 points and 11.1 rebounds per game this season). Naturally, at just 25, he could function as a supporting piece for a young core given his young age. However, the same could be said for the 26-year-old Turner. Ratiocinating this to justify wanting Zubac, when the Pacers aren’t necessarily lacking in the center position, is quite the gamble.
If Indiana is discontent with the current production at the position, which is currently manned in varying capacities between the troika of Isaiah Jackson, Goga Bitadze, and Jalen Smith, then landing the Croatian big man will arm them with a potentially big upgrade. Meanwhile, Coffey and Preston definitely have upside, though the Pacers do not need more mouths to feed in the backcourt as currently constructed.
Grade: B+
A veteran big man and a young rookie could pique the Indiana Pacers’ interest as returns for Myles Turner
No offense to the Indiana Pacers organization and Myles Turner himself, but if there’s any player in the entire association who plays more similar to the actual concept of Myles Turner, it’s Brook Lopez.
If anything, the Milwaukee Bucks do not need anything in their front court. Between Lopez and Bobby Portis, they pretty much have the necessary versatility and utility to augment Giannis Antetokounmpo’s game. Still, it’s not rocket science to see why Turner donning Bucks colors make a ton of sense.
Lopez has been spectacular defensively to begin the campaign, and while his offense has been pretty solid as well, the Bucks may conclude that his waning durability may prove to be something that becomes too dangerous to bank on for the near future as a title contender. Turner is not particularly iron man, but his age gives him an edge in the recuperation department, if it comes to that point.
Landing Lopez is a slam dunk for any win-now team, but the Indiana Pacers are not that just yet. However, MarJon Beauchamp is an intriguing piece who was just drafted in the first-round of the 2022 NBA Draft. Grading this piece is a matter of perspective, but for the Pacers, it may not even be on the table given how well Milwaukee is playing.
Grade: B (the Bucks won’t do it though)