Myles Turner stands tall, makes history
Turner has 1,248 career blocks, Doug McDermott returns, Isaiah Jackson shines at home, Salesforce renews partnership, G League Ignite shutting down and more.
About this time nine years ago, Myles Turner was getting ready to declare for the NBA Draft and shift his focus to pre-draft work. He had just played his final game for the University of Texas — he was one-and-done — and it just so happened that the Bedford, Texas native’s last game was against what would become the local team.
His final college game was a loss to Butler, which is located just six miles north of Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Then during the draft process, much of it was spent answering questions centered on evaluating his gait — his movements, how he ran and got up and down the floor. So much so that his agent had a study done. No red flags.
Now nine years later and on his third contract with the Indiana Pacers, who selected him 11th overall in the 2015 NBA Draft, nobody is talking about that.
Instead, we’re talking about what he’s doing on the court.
Turner has been the lone survivor over the last decade, experiencing typical change in rosters and coaching staffs that come with being in the NBA. He’s been coached by Frank Vogel, Nate McMillan, Nate Bjorkgren and now Rick Carlisle.
And through it all, he’s continued to be the loyal, hard-working and mature teammate that Pacers scouts saw when they attended Rick Barnes’ practices at Texas. Because in his secondary role off the bench, Turner didn’t exactly pop in games. But the Pacers liked what they saw at practice and it paid off. He went from lottery pick to pillar of the franchise for the past decade.
Production and longevity then lead to records and Turner is now alone at the top.
Early in the second half of Friday’s win at Golden State, the team’s fifth straight road win, Turner blocked his third shot of the game to become the franchise’s all-time leader in block shots with 1,246, passing Jermaine O’Neal.
“It's definitely an emotional feeling just being here as long as I have and just going through everything I've been through,” he told reporters postgame. “I think it's amazing I can leave with something no matter what happens in the future. I can tell my kids about this moment (and) my grandkids, and hopefully this record is here to stay for a long time.”
Turner finished with 14 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks in 27 minutes of a game in which they held the Warriors to 40.6% shooting, including 29.2% from outside.