One NBA writer is proposing that the Dallas Mavericks and Indiana Pacers make a trade this summer centered around Myles Turner.
Dan Favale of Bleacher Report proposed that the Mavericks send Maxi Kleber, JaVale McGee, and the 10th pick in the 2023 NBA Draft to the Pacers for Turner. The idea would be for the Mavs to add a rim protector with a stretch-five skill set.
“Shipping out Myles Turner for another lottery pick doesn’t necessarily align with the Pacers’ window. They have spent, roughly, the past two seasons rebuilding harder than they normally do. With a tantalizing nucleus in place and oodle of cap space, they may have designs on taking a galactic leap next year,” Favale wrote. “Moving Turner runs counter to that aim. But entering 2023-24 with two top-10 prospects alongside Tyrese Haliburton and Bennedict Mathurin is endlessly intriguing. The Pacers could also look to repackage No. 10 with No. 7 in an attempt to climb further up the lottery ladder.
“Oh, and who’s to say Indy devolves into deliberate disaster anyway? This trade keeps the Pacers’ $25-plus million worth of cap space intact, and they’re getting a rock-solid big man who can sponge up reps at the 4 or 5 in Kleber. McGee’s deal is a net negative, but it’s cheap and short enough (two years, $11.7 million) to be little more than a footnote.”
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Myles Turner, Indiana Pacers & Dallas Mavericks Updates
Turner averaged 18.0 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 2.3 blocks for the Pacers this season. The two-time blocks champion shot 54.8% from the field and 37.3% from beyond the arc.
Indiana won only 35 games this season. Turner signed a two-year, $58 million extension with the Pacers in January.
“The Mavs might cower at the thought of losing Kleber,” Favale wrote. “But Turner is the rare big who capably stretches the floor and protects the rim. His offense outside of spot-up sniping also improved this past year, and the smarts with which he defends near and away from the hoop are just what a team that plans to build around Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving needs.”
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Myles Turner, Indiana Pacers & Dallas Mavericks Updates
Turner has career averages of 13.4 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 2.3 blocks. He will have made over $140 million in his career once his current contract ends.
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