Just a little less than two weeks away from this year's trade deadline, the Indiana Pacers may move on from long-time center Myles Turner.
According to NBA insider Jake Fischer, rival executives around the NBA believe the Pacers may not be willing to pay Turner's $30 million asking price. Turner is set to hit unrestricted free agency in the summer, and due to his contract, he cannot sign a new deal until then.
Since it appears that not signing him to a new deal is a legitimate possibility for Indiana, the idea of the team trading him this season seems much more real. All things considered, it makes sense for the Pacers to trade Turner for assets in return as opposed to letting him walk in free agency for nothing. However, even given his high asking price, the Pacers must bring Turner back to the team, no matter the cost.
The Pacers cannot trade Myles Turner
Ever since joining the team as a rookie in 2015, Turner has been involved in plenty of trade rumors, so this new development is nothing new. However, for the first time since 2015, the Pacers are flirting with title contention and have something special brewing. Moving on from the 28-year-old now, especially one season after a conference finals appearance, is a bad idea.
Furthermore, on the court, Turner is as good of a center as the Pacers can have in their system. He is a stretch big who is among the league's elite shot blockers. Though he has some shortcomings, particularly as a rebounder, the Pacers are not going to get a better big man than the Texas native anytime soon. It also helps that he complements Pascal Siakam well and is a great fit alongside Tyrese Haliburton in the lineup.
If the Pacers opt to trade Turner, their center position will become a major weakness. Thomas Bryant is a good player who has played some solid basketball since joining the Pacers in December, but there is no doubt that the team would lose a step if they add him into the starting lineup over Turner. Additionally, given that Turner is a free agent next year, it is not as if the Pacers have a lot of leverage in a trade to get a replacement good enough to make an impact, especially this season.
Trading Turner makes some sense on the surface, especially if the Pacers have a genuine reason to believe he will not re-sign with the team in the offseason. However, the Pacers must do whatever they can to keep on the team as they continue to inch closer to legitimate championship contention, even if that means maybe overpaying him in the offseason.