The Tyrese Haliburton injury really changed everything.
It's why Myles Turner is signing with the Milwaukee Bucks and not the Indiana Pacers (and why the Bucks waived Damian Lillard in the process).
It's a serious bummer for Indiana.
Turner was the longest-tenured Pacers player. He'd been in Indiana for a decade, and finally, he'd gotten them back to the NBA Finals.
They didn't beat the Thunder, in part because of Haliburton's heartbreaking Game 7 injury.
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All indications were they wanted Turner back, but that torn Achilles didn't make it possible.
The Pacers seemingly wanted to avoid moving too high up the salary cap while Haliburton was out for the 2025-26 season, and so that made Turner's desired number too much to pay.
The Bucks are huge beneficiaries.
The Pacers? They're in an even sadder state than they already were.
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Now, 2025-26 looks pretty much like a lost season in Indiana.
There's no reason for Pacers fans to be mad at Turner. He went after his fair market value after Indiana declined to pay it in this rough circumstance. And Turner gave 10 years of his life to trying to lift up Pacers basketball.
It's just sad. The Haliburton injury is sad. Turner leaving is sad. It's all a bit sad in Hoosier land right now.
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