NBA Free Agency 2025: when it was Myles Turner, the pacers took the cheap way out again

The Indiana Pacers arrived at a seventh game in the NBA finals only weeks ago after a year of robust game, high offensive rhythm and total buy-in.

The vibrations were high, at the point where the property was willing to enter the luxury tax to sign the Myles Turner starting center again, which would have been a free agent without restrictions by the end of the season.

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Why not? After all, the team was competitive. He had depth, quality practically in all positions and a franchise player in the Tyrese guard Haliburton who knew how to guide him deep in the playoffs.

That is, until Haliburton got the Achilles, he crumbled on the ground and everything changed.

The property has strengthened the ropes of the bag, no longer willing to overcome the luxury tax limit in order to keep Turner around despite an overwhelming interest from the man himself to return.

The result?

Turner has signed with the Milwaukee Bucks for $ 107 million in four years – an agreement that is not only manageable, but of good value – and has left the pacer in a situation where they now have to meditate on where they are exactly direct.

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Haliburton will probably rehabilitate his Achille injury throughout 2025-26 and will return for 2026-27, but it will be a long and boring road.

In the meantime, the Pacers find themselves a little blocked. Andrew Nembhard and Tj McConnell will probably do an excellent job by filling in for Haliburton, but their ceiling is now strongly compromised without Haliburton and no turner.

This could lead to some hard chain effects. Will Pascal Siakam look at the roster and his age at 31 and will reach the conclusion that he must go elsewhere to win?

It would not be an unjust notion.

Bennetic Mathurin is admissible to integration and will have a new agreement between 12 months. How much does it cost too much for a team historically frightened by the luxury tax?

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All this suggests a certain level of chaos that goes on. Everything seems fluid and unpredictable, which is not exactly an environment that promotes the habits of the championship or organizational belief.

So what now?

If the pars want to get rid of this bitter taste of defeat and uselessness quickly, they will have to save things now. No later but during this offseason and have to act quickly.

With their sudden need in the center, the organization should reach Deandre Ayton, who signed in 2022 for an offer sheet, which Phoenix corresponded.

Ayton is not Turner, nor will it be, but it is quite good for the players of the roster to see a true attempt to earn ground, and at the moment it is of immense importance.

But also an acquisition of Ayton, if this materializes, will not shake the feeling of disappointment by the players.

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There is no other way to say it: even with the tear of Achille of Hiliburton, the signal that I send to avoid the luxury fee, letting one of your most important players go is one of clear indifference.

The property has just told the team and the base of the fans that even an exciting appearance of the NBA finals, where they were a victory from taking everything, it is less important than obtaining a piece of that delicious luxury tax payment, sent every year by the teams that cross that threshold.

Money is the point and competitive side of the company is a second distant priority.

What does this mean for the pars who go on?

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In a nutshell, it means that players and agents will see the franchise less as a destination to win and more as a destination in which they can simply play and collect a salary. Ho-Hum.

The strategy of adapting to a team around Haliburton and putting emphasis on depth and quality has worked. Complete stop. It worked and the results were formidable.

It would have all the sense of the world for that direction, but now it is now about to be demolished through the self -driving organizational spending limit.

The pars would have had to lean on this success and build even more aggressively for when Haliburton makes his return.

Instead, they went and left to him and his teammates only with the memories of a final race that is unlikely to be done again.

We hope it was worth it.