Myles Turner Trade Rumors: Hornets 'Have Strong Interest' in Pacers C

Despite potentially losing LaMelo Ball for the rest of the season, the Charlotte Hornets could be buyers at the trade deadline.

Per ESPN's Zach Lowe, the Hornets have "strong interest" in Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner.

Lowe reported that Charlotte could offer some combination of Miles Bridges, P.J. Washington, Devonte' Graham and future draft assets to entice the Pacers to move Turner.

The Hornets announced Sunday that Ball will be out indefinitely after being diagnosed with a fractured bone in his right wrist. He suffered the injury during Saturday's loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Turner has been a frequent topic of trade rumors and speculation for some time, but the Pacers have yet to find a deal to their liking.

Prior to the start of this season, Turner was reportedly close to being traded to the Boston Celtics as part of a sign-and-trade deal involving Gordon Hayward.

Per Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe, Indiana offered Turner and Doug McDermott to the Celtics in exchange for Hayward. Boston turned down the deal because it wanted either T.J. Warren or Victor Oladipo to be included instead of McDermott.

The Hornets have a clear need for a starting center, both for the rest of this season and beyond. Cody Zeller and Bismack Biyombo have shared duties at the position in 2020-21.

Turner would be an upgrade for Charlotte because of his elite defensive traits. He is also an efficient scorer who is averaging 13.2 points per game on 48.5 percent shooting in 2020-21. The 24-year-old is also signed to a reasonable contract that pays him $17.5 million in each of the next two seasons.

The Hornets, who wound up landing Hayward in a sign-and-trade with Boston, are the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference with a 20-21 record. They haven't made the playoffs since the 2015-16 season.