Why the New Orleans Pelicans Should Trade for Myles Turner

Turner Brings Blocks and Boards

While Turner is not elite at getting rebounds he is one of the premier shot blockers in the NBA. he had the most blocks in the NBA during the 2018-19 season beating two-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert and up-and-coming shot blocker Mitchell Robinson.

The difference between Turner and Favors on the glass is not insignificant as Favors averages 3.4 more rebounds per game than Turner (9.9 for Favors versus 6.5 for Turner).

But that doesn’t include the impact Zion has made for the Pelicans since he made his debut on Jan 22nd. According to ESPN:

"Prior to that point, New Orleans ranked 11th in the NBA in rebounding. It has been the second-best rebounding team in the league behind only Antetokounmpo’s Bucks since then, moving up to fifth overall for the season."

If the Pelicans can continue to rebound at this rate it means there could be a couple more fast break opportunities per game. We all know how fun a Lonzo Ball to Zion can be to watch.

Having Zion on the floor with Turner would allow the Pelicans to continue running head coach Alvin Gentry’s fast paced offense while having another shooter that teams must defend or risk Turner knocking down an open three-pointer.

The earlier the team can get the ball into Turner’s hands in transition or a set play for a three-pointer the better as he is shooting 37.5% when the shot clock is between 22-18, 35.6% when the shot clock is between 18-15 and 33.3% when the shot clock is between 15-7.

This shows that if he gets the opportunity the shoot a three early in a possession he can force the defense to rotate and allow an easy basket.

If he does not get a three-point opportunity early he can play his role within the offense knowing he nearly always shoots above 50% from two-point range (the only time he doesn’t is when the shot clock is between 18-15 where he shoots 47.1%).

Trading for Turner wouldn’t be the easiest trade for the Pelicans to make as it seems the Pacers are very interested in keeping both Sabonis and Turner and the Pelicans are tight on cap space for the near future.

But Turner is the type of big man that modern NBA offenses are searching all across the world to find and the Pelicans have plenty of draft picks and young player to entice the Pacers.