The Milwaukee Bucks had the most surprising deal of the offseason when they landed Myles Turner, but they got some unexpected help to make it happen.
Over the past couple of days, the Bucks have again shown their superstar that they will do whatever it takes to try and build a contender. While Giannis Antetokounmpo’s future is still up in the air, making a splash and stealing Turner from the Indiana Pacers was a great move.
While Milwaukee was able to hand Turner a four-year, $107 million offer, that opportunity might not have happened if not for another team. Indiana was unwilling to hand Turner $25 million per year, but that number might have only been the dealbreaker for Turner because of Naz Reid’s deal in Minnesota, according to a recent ESPN article.
“Minnesota signing center Naz Reid to a five-year, $125 million contract last week already had complicated the Pacers-Turner negotiations. Turner, a starter on a Finals team, justifiably had reason to believe he was worth more than the $25 million annual value for Reid, a backup big man for Minnesota.”
Turner secured that value of over $25 million per year with the Bucks and even got an extra year compared to the Pacers’ reported three-year offers. Although the Pacers seemed interested in keeping him, the Bucks were the team ready to make a deal.
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Sure, plenty of factors went into the Bucks being able to sign Turner this offseason. But it can’t be overlooked how Minnesota might have played a critical role in getting Antetokounmpo a perfect frontcourt partner.