Injuries and mismanagement have plagued the Indiana Pacers over the last few NBA seasons and they missed the playoffs for the first-time since the 2014-15 season last year. Nate Bjorkgren lasted one season as the Pacers head coach and now with Rick Carlisle back in Indiana, we should expect the Pacers to be one of the more improved teams in the Eastern Conference during the 2021-22 season.
Fully-healthy, this team definitely has the makings of being a legit playoff threat, but this organization just had not been able to get rid of the “injury bug” over the years. T.J. Warren basically missed the entire season last year with a foot injury, Caris LeVert missed an extended period of time after a small mass was discovered on his kidney and Brogdon, Sabonis and Turner all dealt with various injuries that kept them out of the rotation from time to time.
They definitely have one of the better starting fives in the league, but the Indiana Pacers just have not been able to remain healthy, which is why they could look to make some big moves at some point during the 2021-22 season should they continue to deal with key players being out of the lineup.
Myles Turner’s name has been discussed in NBA trade scenarios for what feels like years now and he seems to be the center of attention on the Pacers roster every single offseason in NBA trade rumors.
Indiana has reiterated that they have no intentions of letting their defensive star go, but the New York Knicks are a team who has been rumored to be eyeing him these last few months and even inquired about him at the NBA trade deadline last season.
Could New York look to make a run at the 2x Block Champion in a midseason trade during the 2021-22 season? Let’s take a look at what the Knicks could wind up offering up for Myles Turner.
New York Knicks Receive: C Myles Turner
Indiana Pacers Receive: C Mitchell Robinson, F Obi Toppin, NYK 2022 1st Round Pick (Unprotected), DET 2023 2nd Round Pick
At first glance, this trade does not seem too favorable for the Pacers, but Myles Turner’s value is not very high, nor very low. He is viewed as a very average trade asset right now league-wide solely because of the fact that he has been injury prone and not utilized much offensively for the Pacers.
He is still an above-average talent, do not get me wrong, but tradewise, the Pacers are not going to be getting top-notch talents/assets for him if they look to move him. Mitchell Robinson and Obi Toppin are both high-potential, young talents who could definitely benefit the Pacers if they look to move on from Turner.
Mitchell Robinson only played in 31 games this past season due to suffering numerous injuries one after the other, but he led the league in field goal percentage during the 2019-20 season and has the potential to be a very effective big man on both ends of the court as he continues to grow.
Obi Toppin, the 8th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, did not play much for the Knicks last season due to Julius Randle having a breakout year, but he has been fantastic in Summer League for New York out in Las Vegas. In five Summer League games, Toppin has averaged 23.0 points, 8.2 rebounds, 1.0 steals, 1.0 blocks and has shot 45.9% from the floor, while also showcasing his ability to also knock down shots from the perimeter.