3 reasons why the Milwaukee Bucks should trade for Myles Turner

Myles Turner is a perfect complement to the Milwaukee Bucks’ other starters

Lopez found a second prime in his career with the Bucks by developing a 3-point shot and being an elite rim protector. Turner is arguably one of only two players, the other being Anthony Davis, who is better at both of those things than Lopez.

Looking at the statistics of Lopez’s tenure with the Bucks versus what Turner is demonstrating on the floor this year for the Pacers it’s easy to see why Turner would slide in perfectly along the likes of Antetokounmpo, Middleton, Holiday, and Allen.

The main points of contention are 3-point percentage and blocked shots, and Turner outperforms Lopez in both. Lopez with the Bucks has shot 34.4 percent from three. That percentage is good enough to have earned him the nickname ‘Splash Mountain’ and make opposing defenders respect his shooting to keep them out of the paint opening lanes for Antetokounmpo to drive through. Looking at Turner, he is shooting a very respectable 39.7 percent on threes so far this season, which would put him second among centers by just .3 percent.

Next looking at blocks per game, Lopez in his time with the Bucks averages two blocks per game, Turner, who led the league in blocks per game last season, is leading the league again so far this season at 2.8 blocks per game. The Bucks like to funnel opposing offenses towards the paint because of their elite rim protection, having a big in the center is important to Milwaukee’s defensive gameplan.

Looking at several other important stats there is really only one aspect that Lopez outperforms Turner and that’s free throw shooting. Lopez shoots 84.1 percent and Turner is shooting 70.8 this season. However, looking at other stats Turner more than makes up the difference. Consider the 2-point field goal percentage, as Lopez shoots 59.6 percent and Turner is at 68.2 percent this year. Combining that with the aforementioned 3-point and free throw percentages and you get a stat called true shooting percentage which measures the efficiency of all three statistics. Lopez’s true shooting percentage with the Bucks rests at 58.6 percent and Myles Turner’s current true shooting percentage is 65.5 percent, so the free throw disparity is made up for by Turner being more efficient on field goals regardless of where he takes them.

Other statistics also lean towards Turner being a helpful complement to the starters. Look at rebounding, for example. Lopez averages 4.8 rebounds per game and Turner is averaging 7.3. It’s reasonable to think Turner’s rebounding would decline in the presence of Antetokounmpo and the Bucks who like to have ball handlers grab rebounds, when possible, to start fast breaks.

The final stat I looked at between Lopez and his time in Milwaukee compared to what Turner has to offer this season is box +/-, which also came from Stathead. Lopez in his time has a box +/- of 1.5, all as a result of his work as a defender. Turner is contributing on both ends of the floor to post a box +/- of 2.8 this season.

Turner would be a younger, better shooting and a similar or potentially better defender than Lopez in a player who believes he hasn’t reached his ceiling.

It would be tough parting with Lopez considering what he has done to help the Bucks back to relevance, and young guys like Donte DiVincenzo and Jordan Nwora have potential but Turner would represent an upgrade and help the Bucks get younger at an important position.