Myles Turner said the Indiana Pacers made his free agency decision easy after offering only $22 million annually over three years. The Milwaukee Bucks presented a four-year, $107 million contract that Turner signed in July.
Negotiations between Turner’s agent and the Pacers stalled quickly after Indiana reached the NBA Finals in June. The Pacers never extended an offer beyond $66 million over three years.
Milwaukee created cap space by waiving and stretching Damian Lillard’s remaining $113 million over five years. The Bucks offered Turner approximately $27 million annually with a player option for the final year.
“I’ve always been told when I was in trade rumors, this is a business,” Turner said. “It’s a $40 million difference at the end of the day.”
Pacers president Kevin Pritchard said he learned of Turner’s decision through social media. He believed negotiations were still ongoing and thought Indiana was near an acceptable number.
“Herb Simon and Steven Rales and the Simon family were fully prepared to go deep into the tax to keep him,” Pritchard said in July. “We were negotiating in good faith.”
Turner spent 10 seasons with Indiana after being drafted in 2015. He was the longest-tenured player on last season’s Finals team.
“[Indiana] made it very clear how they valued me,” Turner said. “And so did the Milwaukee Bucks.”
Turner will face the Pacers for the first time Monday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The Bucks are 4-1 while Indiana has started 0-5.
“There’s going to be some cheers. There’s going to be some boos,” Turner said. “There’s going to be a blend of emotions, for sure.”
Turner is averaging 9.8 points on 39.3 percent shooting through five games with Milwaukee.