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Myles Turner is on the rise, and worth every penny

Tyler Smith December 11, 2018 0

(Myles Turner is on the rise for the Indiana Pacers. Photo by: Pacers Sports and Entertainment)

By TYLER SMITH (@TylerSmith_ISL)
ISL Editor

INDIANAPOLIS —  Myles Turner signed a $72-million-dollar contract extension before the season started.  I said it then, and I’ll say it now- He’s worth it.

Let’s be clear:  The Pacers didn’t pay Myles Turner for his previous stats.  Thanks to daily tweets from Turner-haters, I’m fully aware that his career stat-line doesn’t appear to be worthy of that money. Thankfully, Kevin Pritchard paid him for what he will become.

In every major sport, you see teams giving huge contracts to older players based on their previous numbers and reputation.  It’s like those players are being paid for what they were instead of what they will be.  It’s often a huge mistake and it can set a franchise back several years.  The best contracts are the ones that pay a player for how they will play during the time you’re actually paying them.

Over the last 12 games, Myles Turner has shown a glimpse of what he can be.  He’s averaged 13.3 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 3.3 blocks.  In the month of December?  Even better.  This month he’s averaging 15.4 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.6 blocks while shooting 54% from the field.

And what a lot of fans don’t understand- The numbers don’t always show the full value.

Just ask Darren Collison how valuable Myles Turner is on the defensive end.  “To be honest, I don’t know a big that’s playing better defense than him right now,” Collison said. “He’s got to be in consideration for Defensive Player of the Year.”

Collison continued: “I mean, listen. I’m going to be real with you. When you look at Myles and the type of player he can be, it’s almost scary. He’s long, he can roll to the basket, he can pop from mid-range, he can pop for a 3-pointer. And he can play defense. Most bigs can just play offense or just play defense, or just roll to the basket. Myles has every tool a big in this league needs at some point in every game. It’s just about him putting it together.”

After his monster night on Monday (26 points, 12 rebounds, five blocks), Turner said: “The organization came to me and said ‘Your offense is gonna come, but we need you to be the best defensive player in the NBA’ and I really took that to heart.”

Did you catch that?  The organization:  1. Valued his defense. 2. Knew there was another level for him to reach on defense.  And 3. Believed the offense would come.

There are 59 other players in the NBA that make more money annually than Myles Turner.  His contract was not some crazy overpay to begin with.  Not to mention, IF Myles Turner reached free agency next year, I can almost guarantee you he would’ve been more expensive to retain.  Small markets need to hit on their own draft picks.  They need to believe in their own.  Myles Turner is 22 years old and hasn’t even sniffed his prime years yet.  Combine all of these factors, and I’ll say it again for those in the back: He’s worth the money.

Before the Domantas Sabonis fan club goes crazy here, allow me the opportunity to calm you down a little bit.  I love Sabonis too.  That guy is a beast in the making himself.  Why does every Turner or Sabonis comment have to be pinned against each other?  Right now, the Pacers have both.  It’s a luxury very few teams have.  My hope is, the Pacers have both long-term.  I can envision a scenario where they both start- One gets pulled after eight minutes while the other one stays in the game.  The one who comes out replaces the other in the 2nd quarter and they mix and match from there.  When you have two young beasts that both excel in different ways, you do whatever it takes to make it work.  We’re another season and a half away from this being a possible issue anyway.

Back to Turner.  The Pacers are 9-1 in the last 10 games that Turner has attempted 10 or more shots. As good as he is defensively, the Pacers excel when he’s more involved in the offense.

In early November, Victor Oladipo stood up for Turner in a big way: 

Oladipo said similar things about Sabonis after the trade.  He was right on Sabonis.  He appears to be right on Myles Turner.  Unlike the previous Pacers leader, when Oladipo speaks, I believe him.

The Pacers are 17-10 despite missing Oladipo for 11 games.  Myles Turner is a big reason for that.  He’s a big part of the present and the future.  His prime years are ahead.  The stats don’t tell the whole story on his value.  So the next time you’re tempted to think Myles Turner isn’t worth the money- Just don’t. 

 

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