Tyrese Haliburton Sends Message to Myles Turner After Center's Move to Rival Bucks

Myles Turner surprisingly departed for the Bucks this offseason.
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) and former center Myles Turner (33) talk during the third quarter of game three of the eastern conference finals for the 2025 NBA Playoffs.
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) and former center Myles Turner (33) talk during the third quarter of game three of the eastern conference finals for the 2025 NBA Playoffs. / Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

Following the Indiana Pacers' loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals, center Myles Turner departed in free agency and signed a four-year, $107 million deal with the rival Milwaukee Bucks.

Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle had called re-signing Turner, the previously longest-tenured member of the team, the No. 1 priority this offseason. Indiana was unable to get that done, and Turner instead departed for Milwaukee.

Pacers star guard Tyrese Haliburton shared his thoughts on Turner's departure, recognizing what Turner has done for the organization. Now he says he is shifting his focus to the current team, though.

“Since I got here, for the last ten years, Myles's name has been synonymous with our organization." Haliburton said on The Pat McAfee Show. "He's done a lot here, I think that people have really taken a liking to Myles. He’s done some great things, been a part of some great groups. But at the end of the day, it is a business. He’s got to do what’s best for him and I wish him the best moving forward. My focus is now on the guys that we have here.”

With Turner gone and Haliburton sidelined because of a torn achilles injury he suffered during the Finals, the Pacers will have a different look next season. The Pacers have advanced to at least the Eastern Conference Finals in each of the last two seasons, but without two of their best players from those runs, it will be hard to extend that streak in 2025–26.


More NBA on Sports Illustrated

feed


Published
Eva Geitheim
EVA GEITHEIM

Eva Geitheim is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in December 2024, she wrote for Newsweek, Gymnastics Now and Dodgers Nation. A Bay Area native, she has a bachelor's in communications from UCLA. When not writing, she can be found baking or re-watching Gilmore Girls.