Why a contract extension made sense for the Indiana Pacers and Myles Turner

This weekend, Myles Turner and the Indiana Pacers agreed to terms on a two-year contract extension that would give the center nearly $60 million in new money. Prior to the extension agreement, Turner’s contract was set to expire at the end of the ongoing season, so this is good business by both parties. Indiana gets a great player on a contract that improves their short and long term outlook while Turner gets a significant payday that still allows him to become a free agent before he turns 30. It’s a win-win deal.

Before the season, however, few predicted that this would ever take place. Many are wondering how the Pacers, and Turner, got to a point where a contract extension like this was the best path forward.

Many things changed, and essentially all of them were positive for Indiana’s partnership with Turner. For the Pacers and the Pacers front office, committing to the big man while sacrificing little flexibility became an easy decision, so long as they could agree to financial terms that made sense. The big man has become a valuable piece for the franchise.

Turner, despite rumors throughout recent months suggesting otherwise, has been committed to the Pacers during the season. “Me and the organization are in a great place, and that’s all that matters to me,” he said in early November.

A huge factor that allowed this extension to take place is the Pacers unique salary cap situation. Prior to renegotiating Turner’s deal, the blue and gold were below the salary floor. That meant they had ample salary cap space to renegotiate Turner’s salary this season while also adding additional years on to his contract. In the end, that allowed Turner to be offered a significant salary number while also keeping his cap figure down in each of the next two seasons. While $58 million over two years sounds significant, only about $41 million of that will be paid out in 2023-24 plus 2024-25. The contract gives every party what they need financially — the Pacers reach the salary floor and get Turner on the books at a stellar price in the next two seasons while Turner, of course, gets paid handsomely.

“Get your money, man. At the end of the day, we all play this game for fun. But the underlying thing is we also come in this to take care of our families, to take care of our loved ones, [to] take care of the people around me. I’m never going to stop a man from getting his bread,” Turner said at the end of the 2021-22 season when discussing what advice he would give to teammate Jalen Smith in free agency.

The length of the deal also allows Turner to become a free agent in 2025. He will be 29 years old that summer, which is young enough to get another payday. Additionally, the next NBA television rights deal is expected to be formulated that year, and that could lead to a jump in the salary cap. By being on the market that offseason, Turner could be in line for an additional big contract down the line.

Financially, the stars aligned for Turner and the Pacers to agree on a longer deal. Other factors were perhaps more important, though. Culturally, and from a basketball perspective, the two sides had to mesh, and this season has gone well from that perspective.

The Pacers started off this season with their head coach, Rick Carlisle, sharing that it is a “new era,” of Pacers basketball. With youngsters Tyrese Haliburton (22 years old) and Bennedict Mathurin (20 years old) being the faces of a rebuild, much of the campaign would be defined by how players looked, grew, and fit around those two players.

Turner’s play with the pairing has been essentially perfect. With all three of Turner, Mathurin, and Haliburton on the court this season, the Pacers have a +14.42 net rating in 321 minutes, per pbpstats. That’s an elite net rating that is unsustainably high, but 321 minutes is enough of a sample to know that those three players fit together incredibly well.

Turner has been assisted on 220 made shots this season, and 89 of those assists have come from Haliburton and Mathurin — over 40{ec3984a59f336e74413ebe8cd0979a3fa414de3884cb1e2a06779d998b58dc95} of his assisted makes. Haliburton accounts for a significant percentage of those 89 assists, but the two guards and Turner have complemented each other well all season.

The Pacers, who are currently 24-27, are 20-14 when all three of Turner, Mathurin, and Haliburton are available to play. They’re 4-13 otherwise. Clearly, that trio has a strong impact on Indiana’s level of success, and now they are all under contract with the blue and gold for multiple seasons. Those numbers all couldn’t be ignored when the Pacers were considering an extension for Turner.

Beyond his fit with those two players, the big man has been the ultimate professional for the Pacers this year. He came into training camp and was open and honest about his situation. Turner acknowledged the offseason trade rumors publicly, but shared that he was all in with this younger Indiana group. He noted that it was a “good question,” when asked if he expected to be at media day, but never let his situation be a distraction. Every day, he came in and worked hard. As the longest-tenured Pacer, others followed suit.

“He’s an old vet now,” Turner’s former coach, Nate McMillan, said earlier this season. “Those were some of the things he and I talked about, looking at the veterans. Because one day, you’re going to be that guy that’s going to be kind of the older guy in the room. Guys are going to be following you.”

His growth as a leader this year has been significant. 10 of the 17 players on the Pacers roster were not on the team 12 months ago, so guidance and advice were key for this group. Turner has improved significantly as a veteran, as a leader, and as a voice. That’s been huge for Indiana during its surprising start.

Speaking of improvement, Turner earned this contract, and additional money, thanks to improved play. He has been excellent in 2022-23 and is having the best season of his career.

The eight-year pro is averaging 17.5 points per game, a career high that ranks 55th in the NBA. His rebounding has also improved as he’s bringing in 7.9 per game, the 33rd most in the league. He has paired those numbers with his best-ever shooting season (39.1{ec3984a59f336e74413ebe8cd0979a3fa414de3884cb1e2a06779d998b58dc95} from three-point range) and an overall excellent season in terms of efficiency (64.7{ec3984a59f336e74413ebe8cd0979a3fa414de3884cb1e2a06779d998b58dc95} true shooting, which ranks 17th in the NBA).

“You know Myles, he can score from all three levels,” former Pacer Caris LeVert said of Turner earlier this season. Another former teammate, Justin Holiday, has seen on-court growth in Turner’s mentality.

“I think Myles is always a confident person, but I think his confidence is at an all-time high. He’s making decisions right away and doing it, rolling with it,” Holiday shared.

Another factor that had to be important to Turner, and something that has played a part in his career-best numbers, is that the big man is playing at center every day now. In seasons past, the Pacers frontcourt consisted of both Turner and Domantas Sabonis, meaning it was difficult for Turner to do things typical of a five man. He didn’t venture into the paint much. He wasn’t setting many screens. His offensive involvement was lower. In general, it was a less engaging role.

“Eventually, you’re going to want to move up… I know my worth, I hold myself to a high regard,” Turner said in December of 2021 when noting that he wanted to be more involved. Now, that is happening, which has been great for the 2015 lottery pick. It has to be appealing to know that a desirable role is there for Turner going forward.

“I think he’s embracing the role, I think he’s embracing the physical nature that we need from him,” assistant coach Lloyd Pierce said on Saturday of Turner playing at center this season.

Given where the Pacers, and Turner’s, season started, few thought this partnership would extend. But it did, and it did because everything made sense. Financially, the Pacers and Turner each get what they want. Culturally, both sides are a match. On the court, Turner has been a wonderful fit with the blue and gold, and the role he is playing matches what he has hoped for in the past.