Myles Turner on Lakers Trade Rumors: LA Should Take a 'Very Hard Look' at Pacers Deal
Even Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner believes the Los Angeles Lakers should take a "very hard look" at potentially trading for him amidst a 1-5 start.
"If I'm the Lakers, I take a very hard look at this with the position that you're in," he told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski on his The Woj Pod when asked if the Lakers should trade two future first-round picks for him. "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. And I take a very long look at it. But as far as pulling the trigger, you know... I get paid to shoot, not making these calls, so I couldn't answer that."
Given Russell Westbrook's struggles since joining the Lakers and his poor fit next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis, he was the subject of relentless trade rumors throughout the entire summer.
One of the most persistent rumors was a trade to the Pacers, alongside the Lakers' first-round picks in 2027 and 2029, for Turner and Buddy Hield.
While the future draft capital would be steep, both Turner and Hield would be more natural fits for the Lakers than Westbrook. Turner's shot-blocking would allow the Lakers to play AD at the 4, saving him some wear-and-tear during the regular season, while his ability to shoot from the perimeter wouldn't completely kill the team's spacing.
Turner is averaging 16 points, eight rebounds and 4.5 blocks per game in two contests this season, shooting 38.1 percent from the field and 37.5 percent from three.
And Hield would give them a much-needed shooter to help with the aforementioned spacing, allowing James to more comfortably play his role as the primary playmaker on offense.
It would also put an end to the Westbrook circus, and the corresponding media storm. The latest turn has been the veteran point guard and former MVP coming off the bench in the past two games, an experiment that seemed to work in the team's 121-110 win over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday, ending a five-game losing streak.
"To be a player of his caliber and asked to come off the bench, that's truly a guy doing whatever the team asks to get a win," Davis told reporters regarding Westbrook. "Sacrifice his starting position for the betterment of the team. He's flourished in that role. That's all we can ask for. I told him, 'Just keep what you're doing, man. Everything you're doing is unbelievable.' In the last two games, he just kind of been doing his thing. Proud of him."
For many Lakers fans, those two games aren't going to erase the tumultuous nature of Westbrook's entire tenure in Los Angeles. It may buy the Lakers time to take a longer look at whether it's a sustainable situation in the long term, however.
