Honestly, if you told a Pacers fan two years ago that Myles Turner would leave Indianapolis for a division rival just weeks after a deep playoff run, they’d have laughed you out of the building. But NBA business moves fast. Sometimes it moves in ways that leave everyone—including the team's own president—scrambling to catch up with social media alerts.
The saga of Myles Turner free agency wasn't just a simple contract dispute. It was a perfect storm of financial hardlines, a massive roster gamble in Milwaukee, and a player finally deciding he’d heard "it’s a business" one too many times.
The $40 Million Gap That Broke the Pacers
When the 2025 offseason kicked off, the vibe in Indy was basically "keep the band together." The team had just pushed through an incredible postseason. Turner was the longest-tenured player on the roster. He was the defensive anchor who could actually shoot.
Then the negotiations started.
Indiana reportedly put a three-year, $66 million offer on the table. That’s roughly $22 million a year. For a center who protects the rim and spaces the floor—a rare "unicorn" archetype—that felt low. Turner’s camp wasn't looking for a hometown discount; they were looking for market value.
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While the Pacers were hesitant to dive deep into the luxury tax, the Milwaukee Bucks were busy doing some cap-sheet gymnastics. Milwaukee eventually offered a four-year, $107 million deal. If you're doing the math, that’s a nearly $40 million difference in total guaranteed money.
Turner later admitted the decision was "easy" once the numbers were out. You can love a city and a locker room, but you don't leave $40 million on the table when you're 29 years old.
Why Milwaukee Blew Up Their Roster for Turner
The Bucks’ side of this is even wilder. To make the Myles Turner free agency signing work, they had to do something drastic: they waived and stretched Damian Lillard’s massive contract.
It was a total "burn the ships" move.
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- The Cost: Milwaukee is now paying Lillard $22.5 million a year for the next five years not to play for them.
- The Goal: Pair Turner with Giannis Antetokounmpo to create the ultimate modern frontcourt.
- The Reality: The fit has been... rocky.
In Indiana, Turner flourished because the floor was wide open. In Milwaukee, the spacing has felt cramped at times. Through the early part of the 2025-26 season, Turner’s scoring dipped to around 12.2 points per game, his lowest output in years. Critics have already started calling this one of the "worst" contracts of the 2025 cycle, not because Turner isn't good, but because of the opportunity cost of losing Dame.
The Fallout in Indianapolis
The Pacers didn't just lose a starter; they lost their identity.
Without Turner, the Pacers’ defense has looked like a revolving door. They’ve been forced into a "hard reset" faster than anyone expected. It didn't help that Tyrese Haliburton’s Achilles injury sidelined him for the 2025-26 season, but Turner's absence is the structural hole that really stings.
Pacers President Kevin Pritchard was famously caught off guard by the move. He thought they were still talking. He thought they were close. Instead, he found out Turner was gone through a tweet. That kind of disconnect usually points to a relationship that had been fraying behind the scenes for years, likely fueled by the constant trade rumors Turner survived during the Sabonis era and beyond.
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What the Experts Got Wrong
Most analysts assumed Indiana would pay whatever it took to keep the core together. They cited the "Bird Rights" and the chemistry Turner had with Haliburton. What they missed was the Pacers' internal salary cap—a ceiling they simply wouldn't break for a non-All-Star center, regardless of his tenure.
Actionable Insights for the Trade Deadline
If you're following the ripple effects of this move, here is what to keep an eye on as we approach the 2026 trade deadline:
- Monitor the Bucks' Aggression: If the Turner-Giannis pairing doesn't start clicking soon, don't be surprised if Milwaukee looks to move other veteran assets to recoup some depth. They are all-in, but the "all" is looking a bit thin.
- The Pacers' Pivot: Indiana is currently sitting on a "Myles Turner-sized hole." Watch for them to be aggressive in the trade market for a vertical spacer. Names like Daniel Gafford have already surfaced in rumors as they try to find someone who can catch lobs from Haliburton once he returns.
- The 2026 Center Market: Turner’s $27 million AAV (Average Annual Value) has set the floor for the next crop of free-agent bigs. Players like Mitchell Robinson and Isaiah Hartenstein will be looking at Turner’s deal as the baseline for their own negotiations.
The Myles Turner free agency era proved that in the modern NBA, sentimentality is a luxury most teams can't afford—and $40 million is a gap no amount of "hometown love" can bridge.