Oh, yes! Myles Turner should be at the top of the Raptors’ Christmas list.
When you think of Myles Turner I bet the first thing that comes to mind is his blocks and shooting threes. What more do you want out of a big man? Right? Well, Myles Turner in Indiana is being used as a “glorified role player,” as he puts it. Yikes! I have to agree because his post and face-up game have not developed since he came into the league, so I would argue he’s gone backward in this respect.
Courtesy Indy Star
Myles Turner is a career 36% from 3 on 2.6 attempts per game. Yet, he’s only at a career 12.7 pts per game guy. Indiana seems insistent on using Myles as a three-and-D big man. That’s a little unconventional, and it has severely hindered his development. They do this because their other big, Sabonis, needs space to operate. The Raptors could face the same issue with their big. Pascal Siakim.
That said, Siakim is a much better shooter and playmaker than is Sabonis, and he also has proven that he plays better with a traditional center and he can also dump it off when help comes.
Myles came in the league averaging 8.6 2PA. He’s now averaging only 4.1 2PA per game. One reason is significant progress to his ability to hit from long range– 0.2 3PA 1st year compared to 4.7 this year. Not only is Myles a fantastic shooter for a big man, but he is also an effective defender at 6’11 with a 7’4 wingspan (career 2.3 blocks per game).
But playing with a guy like Sabonis turns Myles into a perimeter player. Unless your name is Steph Curry, you’re not going to have an impact if you’re relying only on the perimeter game, especially if you are a player with a physique like Myles.
The Raptors know how to develop bodies, and see Myles Turner the same way I view Chris Boucher, but without the inability to handle bigger bodies and being challenged (at times) by the Raptors’ defense system.
Myles Turner should be at the top of the Raptors’ Christmas list. He has All-Star potential at 25 years years of age, and he might be the best option for Toronto’s future in the middle. While I’m not going to get into the fantasy trade-sphere, I do think that Turner is the more affordable of Indiana’s two big men, and I also think he has the highest upside in the Raptors’ system.
