Pacers still considered most likely team to make Russell Westbrook trade as Myles Turner comments on Lakers rumors
Once the 2022-23 NBA season started, it felt as if the Russell Westbrook to Indiana trade chatter would die down for a bit.
For about 12 days, that was the case. Despite some oddsmakers still appointing the Pacers as the most likely team to trade for Westbrook after his poor start to the season — he averaged just 10.3 points per game on 28.9 percent shooting in the Los Angeles Lakers first three games and then missed the fourth due to injury — the Lakers were reportedly not interesting in reviving trade talks until closer to Thanksgiving.
"I'm told to expect Rob Pelinka and the Lakers to wait until post-Thanksgiving, 20 games into the season, and see what teams may start pivoting," Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN said on NBA Countdown.
Westbrook has since been more impactful, and the Pacers got two big wins over the weekend. It felt like the reports of trade chatter would subside until at least late November, as Wojnarowski reported.
But that changed on Monday when Pacers center Myles Turner went on The Woj Pod, Wojnarowski's podcast. The two discussed trade talk for the first one-third of the interview.
Most reporting has indicated that any deal between the Lakers and Pacers would contain Turner and guard Buddy Hield going to Los Angeles while Westbrook and two first-round draft picks — perhaps protected, perhaps not — head to Indiana. Turner was asked in the first question of the interview if he would do the deal involving both picks if he were the Lakers.
"That's such an intriguing question, at that. I think personally, when you look at this business of the league and knowing the landscape of the league, you have to go off your future. We all know picks are so valuable in this league," Turner said. "Someone like myself, I'm heading into the last year of my deal. You want to make sure you're getting a return for your assets, right? So if I'm the Lakers, I take a very hard look at this with the position that you're in.
"I know what I can provide for a team. My leadership, my shot blocking, my three-point ability, and just my ability to make plays out there on the floor. I'd take a very long look at it. As far as pulling the trigger, I get paid to shoot,not to make these calls. I couldn't answer that," he added. The Pacers big man clearly understands the dynamics of this trade, between both Indiana's desire for picks and need to not lose Turner for nothing as well as the Lakers position where they need more skill around LeBron James.
Those comments will do little to slow down trade chatter. Turner has been in trade rumors his entire career essentially, but this time it's different — he is on an expiring contract, and it would be risky for the Pacers to get to free agency with Turner still on the roster and risk losing him for nothing.
"Coming into a contract year as well, you can't lose me for anything. They can't have the notion of me playing out this year, they don't trade me, and it's like 'okay, say free agency comes around and I don't re-sign here'. Let's just be real in that that's just bad on the organization, them not making a powerful move at that," the eight-year pro said of Indiana and its trade motivations. "So if they do trade me, and they do get assets for me coming along, they're doing what's best for them and just looking out for, doing what they're paid to do."
Turner also discussed the appeal of playing in a bigger market like Los Angeles on the podcast episode, though he also expressed happiness at his current situation in Indiana both in terms of his new role and his exciting new teammates. He answered the questions asked to him in a way that both shows he understands the business side of the league and understands the realities of both situations he could find himself in.
It's still possible that Turner could be traded elsewhere, or even not traded at all. He is still eligible for a contract extension and just had a huge game in a win over the Washington Wizards. Time will tell how this saga shakes out, but it didn't take much time in the season for the Turner-Westbrook trade chatter to resurface.
"I know that I'm a very talented player in this league, and the future is very bright for me," the former lottery pick said.
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