Jalen Brunson is certainly quite familiar with the Indiana Pacers. His New York Knicks have been eliminated by them in the playoffs each of the last two seasons. Of course, when Brunson’s Knicks take on the Pacers next season, he won’t be seeing the same exact squad. That’s not only because of Tyrese Halliburton’s torn Achilles either. Like many others, Brunson seemed a bit confused about the Myles Turner situation.
Pacers All-Star Rival Finds Myles Turner Situation To Be ‘Weird’
Joining The Bucks After 10 Seasons With The Bucks
Selected 11th overall in the 2017 NBA Draft, Turner spent each of his first 10 years as a member of the Pacers. A part-time starter as a rookie, he has been Indiana’s full-time starting center each of the last nine years. Could he go the Reggie Miller route and play his entire career with just one team, the Pacers?
Now, we know the answer to that question is no. As a free agent, Turner left Indiana to join the Milwaukee Bucks on a four-year deal worth $107 million. It was a move that was predicted by literally nobody. Just like the Knicks, the Bucks were eliminated by the Pacers in each of the last two postseasons.
The Pacers have made moves this offseason to try to make up for losing Turner. They traded for Jay Huff, re-signed Isaiah Jackson, and brought back James Wiseman.
Jalen Brunson Speaks On Myles Turner Leaving Pacers
Brunson co-hosts a podcast called the Roommates Show with his Villanova buddy and current Knicks teammate, Josh Hart. On the most recent episode, Brunson spoke on Turner’s exodus from Indiana. He said,
“I thought the Myles Turner thing was weird,” Brunson said. “Like he just said, ‘It’s been a decade here’ and all this stuff and everything, and then, boom, gone.”
With those words, the two-time All-Star reiterated what pretty much every Pacers, and most NBA fans in general, thought about the Turner situation. Indiana ownership had spoke about entering the luxury tax for the first time in years to keep the core of the team together. Maybe the Haliburton injury changed their thinking, but their actions didn’t match their words.
Franchise Leader In Blocks
Due to playing a decade with the Pacers, Turner finds his name on numerous franchise leaderboards. The 6-foot-11 center is the team’s all-time leader in blocks with 1,412. He is also fourth in three-pointers made (756), sixth in games played (642), and ninth in rebounds (4,349).
Now, none of those numbers would be added upon (unless he later has a second tenure with the team). When the Knicks are playing the Pacers next season, and Jalen Brunson is driving it to the hole, it was be much less intimidating seeing the likes of James Wiseman, Isaiah Jackson, and Jay Huff manning the middle instead of Myles Turner.
Photo credit: © Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
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