The Bucks traded a Hall of Fame point guard, took on dead salary to land Myles Turner, and bet everything that he'd be the perfect fit next to Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Three months into the season, that bet looks disastrous.
Milwaukee moved on to this newest era of Bucks basketball because they believed he'd unlock their potential. A stretch five who could protect the rim and space the floor, at least schematically, was exactly what Giannis needed to dominate. That was the pitch, the grand plan that justified blowing up a roster built around two superstars.
Now it's December, and Milwaukee's sitting at 11th in the Eastern Conference with an 11-17 record. The Giannis trade chatter, which the Turner acquisition was supposed to silence, is louder than it's ever been. Things were absolutely not supposed to go down like this.
The Bucks' Myles Turner era is starting more distressingly than expected
It's obviously very early in the season, but the advanced stats completely expose Turner's impact (or lac as somewhere between neutral and actively harmful.
Per PBP Stats, the Bucks are a net-minus 1.6 points per 100 possessions when Turner is on the floor. That means Milwaukee is literally worse with their supposed centerpiece acquisition playing than when he sits.
In fact, in the last five games, Bobby Portis is scoring more points per game (18.0) than Turner has been (13.0) on better efficiency from the field (55.6 percent vs. 41.5) and from distance (55.6 vs. 33.3). That's on top of averaging more rebounds (7.2 vs 3.0) and fewer personal fouls.
The Bucks never expected Turner to be a second superstar or anything of the sort, but they did expect him to be a star within his role. The minimum expectations were for him to do what he's always done in his career, and so far, he's failed to live up.
Turner needs to be better -- not just incrementally, but dramatically and urgently. Enough time has passed that this is no longer about adjusting to a new system or building chemistry over time. The Bucks are careening toward disaster while their big offseason acquisition provides negative value on the court.
His shooting has been inconsistent when it needs to be elite. The defensive anchor role everyone promised hasn't materialized consistently enough to justify his minutes. The spacing he supposedly creates doesn't matter when he's not actually making threes at a high percentage.
Dame's gone, the Bucks are terrible, and Turner's the common denominator in a trade that was supposed to save Milwaukee's championship window. Instead, it might've accelerated its closure.
The front office gambled that fit mattered more than talent, that Turner's complementary skills would elevate Giannis more than Dame's individual brilliance. They were wrong, and now they're paying the price with a losing record and a franchise player who's probably updating his list of preferred destinations.
This was supposed to be the move that locked in Milwaukee's contention for the next three years. Instead, it's December and the Turner era already feels like a failed experiment that cost the Bucks everything.
Christmas is coming, and the Bucks had better hope for a miracle to save their season.
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