Myles Turner signs with Bucks, further altering Pacers immediate future

The Pacers former center signed up with Giannis for a championship run with the Central Division rival Bucks.

The Pacers as we knew them are no longer.

Less than 10 days after the Pacers lost Tyrese Haliburton to injury and fell short in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, the team’s continuity was blown up in an instant when Shams Charania reported that Myles Turner had agreed to a 4-year, $107 million free agent deal with the Milwaukee Bucks.

The news was stunning on a Tuesday morning following a dearth of information regarding the Pacers plans on Monday evening after the free agent period opened at 6 p.m. ET. After 10 years with the Pacers, which culminated in a glorious postseason run to the Finals, Turner took all of his love for the city with him, presumably to have a better shot at a championship with Giannis Antetokounmpo while Tyrese Haliburton is sidelined with Achilles rehab.

Of course, Shams reports one side of these breaking NBA transactions, usually serving as a PR mouthpiece for the player’s agent. So his reports indicated the Pacers weren’t willing to go into the luxury tax and only offered Turner $20 million per year. Local reports, including this from Gregg Doyel of the Indy Star, offered the Pacers side of the story that included an offer of 4-years, $95ish million.

Even $20 million would’ve had the Pacers in the luxury tax, but there were certainly other factors at play than just money. There are tax repeater penalties that the Pacers would start the clock on were they to get into the tax this season that has already been disrupted by the absence of Haliburton.

But there is also the big picture and how to assess Turner’s worth in two years after an inconsistent playoff run when he was left off the court in several games. I’m not the best person to defend Turner here since I’ve been sheepish about supporting him taking up $30 mil of the cap, even playing at his best. So, I can see why the Pacers may want to take their chances on finding a different option at center while waiting for Haliburton to return.

While it appears Turner and his reps were not in the mood to do the Pacers any favors, the fact the Pacers were unable to get anything in return via a sign-and-trade looks brutal. Now, a draft pick or two would have been nice, but what player (and more importantly) salary would have been in play coming back to the Pacers?

Now the Pacers are still over the salary cap even without Turner, so they can’t just add a player or use that space that went out the door with Turner. They do have a $14ish million mid-level exception available, which could be used for a center like DeAndre Ayton (would rather not, personally).

Isaiah Jackson remains an option and the fact the Pacers made him a qualifying offer over $6 million to kick off the week was a good indication in hindsight that something may be up with the Turner situation. IJax is coming off an Achilles, as is James Wiseman, but both are still engaged with the Pacers. Jackson was one of the fastest centers in the league prior to his injury, would be great to see that speed added to the Pacers style of play.

Whew…could talk about the minutia all day, but Turner’s departure is a major jolt to the franchise off the court, as well. Turner arrived in Indy as a very sharp 19 year-old, so impressive from his first interview until his last with the team. He sponsored Turner’s Block for a collegiate style fan section in the Club Level which he took over from Roy Hibbert in his rookie season.

Not seeing Turner go to midcourt for the opening tip will take some getting used to, but the Pacers still have the remainder of the rotation that made it to the Finals. All but Haliburton will be available this season, but the team needs to focus on the continued development of Benn Mathurin, Jarace Walker, Johnny Furphy and even rookie Kam Jones.

Of course, the offseason is very young and the Pacers could certainly make more moves to not just add a center but also further alter the rotation. Kevin Pritchard has a history of making the most of strange roster circumstances, so we’ll see what he has in store now. I’d assume any alterations would be around the edges, maintaining the Nembhard, Nesmith, Siakam and Haliburton core for another run together in 2026-27.

But nothing is guaranteed and the contract years go by quick…just like the shine from a deep playoff run to the NBA Finals. That was fun, wasn’t it? Hope you enjoyed it while it lasted.