Whether it’s a huge or little deal, it happens every NBA season. However, only a select few players are frequently the subject of rumors, with their names being bandied around in trade talk. Zach LaVine and Kyle Kuzma are two players who have demonstrated that this season. Those who are hoping for a blockbuster deal in the winter will talk about what will happen to star guards Bradley Beal and Donovan Mitchell, who have been linked to several trade speculations. Myles Turner, though, might have had it the worst of all throughout the previous three seasons.
Turner has played with the Indiana Pacers his whole professional career. He began his career filling in for shot-blocker Roy Hibbert, and his primary responsibility was to provide interior defense to the team’s players. Turner was a wonderful idea, but he departed Texas averaging 2.6 blocks per game as a one-and-done prospect. But everything changed when their finest player, Paul George, was moved to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Start of the End… Almost Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis, two players of star quality, were acquired by the Pacers in exchange for George.
In fact, Oladipo achieved career-high averages of 23.1 points and 2.4 steals per game in his first season in Indiana, which earned him the Most Improved Player of the Year Award. Regretfully, the body of the former second overall pick failed to withstand the demands of the NBA and started to malfunction during his second season with the Pacers. Sabonis, however, had a rough start in Indiana. Over his first two seasons in the Pacers, he finished each game with an average of 12.9 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 0.4 blocks.
Despite becoming an All-Star in 2020, he did so too late. Teams expressed interest in Turner during the 2019 NBA Draft, believing that he and Sabonis would not be a good combination in the long run. Turner, however, was more important because Sabonis had not yet developed into a star. He consequently attracted greater interest from opposing clubs and the media. This let a lot of clubs know about Turner, and soon the Boston Celtics and New Orleans Pelicans were among them. However, it seemed that just one team was interested in a trade up to this moment, as the Pacers turned down several offers for the big man.
Next was the 2020 Bleacher Report story claiming that Turner was supposedly up for trade. After that, nothing was ever the same. The Celtics were eager to deal Gordon Hayward to the Pacers because he wanted to go back to his home state. Turner was offered by Indiana.
