For months now, one of the biggest potential trades that has seemed to be available to the Los Angeles Lakers has been the potential acquisition of Indiana Pacers stars Myles Turner and Buddy Hield.
Though the Lakers 2022-23 season is already in free fall, lead executive Rob Pelinka and the rest of the Lakers front office have yet to make a move. As it pertains to the potential swap with the Pacers, it appears as though there is hesitance for one specific reason.
According to a report, Lakers staff members are not convinced that acquiring Hield and Turner would turn the Lakers into title contenders.
“It is not universally believed internally that a trade for Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner and sharpshooter Buddy Hield would move the needle to title contention, sources say,” Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report wrote.
The reason why this is so important is well-known to Lakers fans. In order to get this potential deal done, it is widely believed that the Lakers would have to part ways with both their 2027 and 2029 first-round picks. There is no guarantee that the Lakers will be a competitive team at that point in time, so the potential value of both future picks is believed to be quite high.
Essentially, the Lakers would be mortgaging their future by trading away both picks. For that reason, it makes sense why decision-makers within the organization are hesitant to get Hield and Turner if they think the two wouldn’t turn the Lakers into a contending franchise right now.
But how true is that belief? Based on the numbers that both Hield and Turner are putting up this season, there is no denying that both could contribute strongly to the Lakers.
Hield is averaging 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game at the shooting guard position. He’s shooting 46.3 percent from the field and 40.4 percent from deep. He’d be one of the best shooters on the team on his first day on the job.
As for Turner, he’s putting up 17.7 points, 8.5 rebounds and an impressive 3.3 blocks per game this season. He’s also a shooting option and is posting shooting percentages of 49.3 from the field and 33.3 from deep.
Perhaps most importantly, Turner being added to the roster would afford star big man Anthony Davis the chance to return to the power forward position. Though Davis has played at center this season, he has repeatedly made it clear that he prefers to play at the 4 and believes he is more suited to that position.
Moreover, a player of Turner’s caliber on the defensive side of things would vastly help Davis and allow him to focus more of his energy on the scoring end.
Perhaps the Lakers front office is right in its belief that Turner and Hield wouldn’t move the needle. However, given the many whiffs that fans have seen the front office commit over the last few seasons, it’s hard to trust its opinion on much at the moment.
Only time will tell if this potential deal with the Pacers is the one that the Lakers ultimately choose to make.
