Pacers Lose Myles Turner to East Rival in $107 Million Deal

Myles Turner has spent his entire ten-year NBA career with the Indiana Pacers. He finally had a shot to win an NBA championship with the team that drafted him less than a week ago.

Turner was terrible in the Finals, shooting under 20% from beyond the three-point arc against the Thunder. Still, it was expected that the Pacers would retain him.

Turner made it known that he wanted to remain with the Pacers, especially after a run to the Finals. Instead, he has shockingly signed a deal with a hated division rival.

Shockingly, Turner has signed a four-year deal with $107 million with the Milwaukee Bucks. The team that Indiana has eliminated in each of the last two years will now have Turner.

BREAKING: Free agent center Myles Turner has agreed to a four-year, $107 million deal with the Milwaukee Bucks, plus a player option for year four in 2028-29 and a full 15% trade kicker, sources tell ESPN. Stunner. pic.twitter.com/MlDkZusVOv
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2025

It was rumored that the Pacers were going to pay into the luxury tax for the first time in 20 years in order to retain Turner. According to Shams Charania, the Tyrese Haliburton injury changed that approach from Herb Simon.

Turner, the longest tenured Pacer, made it known he wished to remain in Indiana. Since the Game 7 exit, Turner’s reps pushed to get a deal done. Ultimately, Indiana’s aversion to the tax, which grew after Tyrese Haliburton’s injury, allowed Bucks to get the new franchise center. https://t.co/lZqZudrUWg
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2025

Had Haliburton not torn his Achilles in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, Turner would likely still be in Indiana. It's a shocking turn of events for a franchise that just made a historic run through the playoffs.

In order to make room for this, the Bucks waived and stretched Damian Lillard, ending his career with the Bucks. It's a shocking turn of events for two teams in the Central division.

The Pacers now need to find a plan at the center position very quickly. The free agent market was already very poor at that spot, and Turner was the best option out there.

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The Pacers might have to resort to signing Deandre Ayton, whom they signed to an offer sheet a few years ago when he was a restricted free agent. That would be a horrible trade in talent, especially with how Indiana plays.

Ayton has an effort issue. That's not something that can be coached. Unless there is a massive trade in the works, that might be what the Pacers end up doing, because they have no backup plan.

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