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Myles Turner is no longer allowing constant trade rumors to bother him.
The Indiana Pacers center said he is “finally numb” to the speculation in a first-person article published at Andscape.
“This is my fifth offseason with trade rumors going on. ‘He’s going to land here; he’s going to do this. He going to do that.’ I am finally numb to it, in a sense. So that’s another thing that I was proud of myself for as well,” Turner wrote.
Turner has spent his entire seven-year career in Indiana, but it’s felt like he was going to be on the move at several different points. The Pacers shopped him as they tried to break up the awkward fit of Turner and Domantas Sabonis, only to eventually ship out Sabonis as part of a deal to acquire Tyrese Haliburton at the 2022 trade deadline.
Indiana then sought to replace Turner again this offseason, signing Deandre Ayton to a four-year max offer sheet. The Phoenix Suns thwarted those plans by matching the offer sheet, but the speculation still hasn’t quieted down.
Turner and Buddy Hield have been linked to a potential move to the Los Angeles Lakers in a deal sending Russell Westbrook to Indiana. The Lakers have starrier visions of landing Kyrie Irving from the Brooklyn Nets, but it’s possible they wind up settling for the Turner-Hield package as they attempt to build a more cogent roster around Anthony Davis and LeBron James.
Turner averaged 12.9 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game last season. He and Davis would be perhaps the fiercest defensive big man group in basketball, and both are rangy enough to stretch out beyond the three-point line and not clog driving lanes. There’s a strong basketball fit to be had, and Turner might finally be freed from the constant speculation about his future.
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