Boston Celtics: Longtime big man trade target proposed once again by Boston.com
The Boston Celtics have once again been linked to a big man target who was frequently in discussions involving Gordon Hayward when he was still with the team — that being Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner.
Turner was pitched by Boston.com’s Peyton Doyle as someone the Cs can deploy next to both Robert Williams III — due to Turner’s floor-stretching ability, evidenced by his 39% conversion rate from beyond the arc — and Al Horford due to his rim-protecting abilities.
Doyle believes now is the time to make a move with the Pacers after Tyrese Haliburton’s recent knee and elbow injuries, and with Indiana potentially looking to sell, Turner could be one of the first veterans to go:
"“With no set timetable for Halliburton’s return, now is the time for Indiana to go full sell mode and try and grab the best draft spot possible from this season. The first two names that have to go are Turner and Hield.”“If the Celtics are the team that moves on Turner, they would be getting a mobile rim protector playing the best basketball of his career.”"
What it would cost the Boston Celtics to acquire Myles Turner in a trade
Boston.com’s Peyton Doyle was a little misguided on what it would take for the Boston Celtics to land Myles Turner in a trade. Though Doyle suggests the Cs can combine one of the team’s TPEs along with other salaries to get a deal done, but that is impermissible per the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement.
In order to land Turner, a bigger contract or several salaries aggregated together will need to be included to get the deal done due to Turner’s. Derrick White’s $16.3 million cap figure makes a swap easy, but Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens could also get creative and dangle Danilo Gallinari’s dead money, Grant Williams, Payton Pritchard, and several minimum salaries to match Turner’s $18 million cap hit.
Whether or not the price would be worth it is for the Cs front office to decide, but it’s undoubtable that Turner is among the top gettable targets on the trade market considering Stevens’ experience negotiating with the Pacers front office.