The Milwaukee Bucks made their big free agency signing when they signed Myles Turner to a four-year, $107 million deal earlier this offseason.
Turner spent the first 10 years of his career with the Indiana Pacers, where he averaged 14.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game. Turner was also key to the Pacers’ run to the NBA Finals this past season, where they fell in seven games to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Keith Smith of Spotrac spoke with an anonymous Bucks coach at the NBA Summer League, where they told Smith their reasoning for signing Turner, comparing him to the previous center for the team Brook Lopez, by pointing out the similarities in their skill sets.
“When we signed Brook (Lopez) forever ago, it was because we knew adding a floor space that could protect the rim next to Giannis would make us hard to deal with on both ends,” they said, per Smith. “We’re doing the same with Myles. He’s not exactly the same as Brook, but we don’t have to completely change our identity with Myles either. That’s huge for continuity.”
Turner has made a name for himself in the NBA as a floor spacing, shot-blocking big man. Turner is a career 36 percent three-point shooter, and this past season shot a career-high 40 percent from three on over five attempts per game. At 29-years-old, he is considerably younger than Lopez, and makes the Bucks’ front court much more athletic with his unique two-way playstyle.
