Indiana Pacers: The Main Takeaway From Media Day

Myles Turner isn’t going to be a good addition for the Indiana Pacers in 2015-16.

He’s going to be marvelous. The organization will find out, sooner rather than later, how fortunate they were to land such a flourished person in the 2015 Draft.

“Person” is the right term to attach at the end, instead of “player.” While he’s far from the blossomed talent Indiana needs in the frontcourt — with Roy Hibbert and David West departing for the West this summer — Turner personifies the attitude, work ethic, and charisma that every franchise aims for.

Upon being drafted at No. 11 overall (behind Frank Kaminski, Stanley Johnson, and Willie Cauley-Stein), Indiana’s newest center set out to prove a point. He nearly ravaged the Orlando Summer League with his two-way explosion, and which had the Pacers’ front office realizing they nailed a lottery pick.

It was actually the third time in six years of hitting the jackpot, except they only have two piles of gold in possession. After drafting Kawhi Leonard in 2011, Indiana dealt him to San Antonio in order to address its point guard failures.  Had he kept Leonard in 2011, Larry Bird would’ve had three incredible picks in less than a decade — Leonard, Turner, and Paul George.

As he transforms from a college freshman at the University of Texas to a professional over 1,000 miles away, Turner is bringing his innate professionalism along the way. Just from sitting down with him for 10 minutes, I almost fell out of my chair while admiring his professionalism. He listens to any advice, takes criticism in a constructive manner, and respects every person that wants to help him succeed.

"“He’s very mature for his age,” Paul George said. “That’s going to go a long way. He knows the game, it comes natural and easy for him. My job is just to help guide him. I know what a center is defensively. I played with an all-star center, and I see a bright future for this kid. If he doesn’t pan out to be great, it’s my fault.”"

You have to realize something. For a 25-year-old superstar (and MVP caliber player) to detail those kind of words about a 19-year-old kid, Turner’s summer impressions must have been outstanding. George is already embracing a leadership role with his new big man, when it could be easy for George to enter “selfish mode” this year. Playing on a team without another Top-30 player, he could’ve turned into a one-man wrecking crew.

But instead, George is setting the right type of goals for himself. He’s putting the weight on his shoulders to help Turner form into an all-around asset. He understands that Indiana wouldn’t have sniffed two straight Eastern Conference Finals without the imposing rim-stoppage from Hibbert and David West. To help Turner develop that same aptitude for the future is the only way he’ll guide the Pacers back. He’s not blind to it.

Where things get electric for Indiana, however, is with Turner’s offensive capacity. Believe it or not, folks around the organization are more impressed with his versatility than him just being a point-saver in the paint:

"“Myles has that LaMarcus Aldridge kind of game, to where he can step out to the perimeter,” George said. He’s comfortable with his back to the basket, you know the turnaround & step-back jumpers. That’s what made LaMarcus so special. He has that same kind of game.”"

Although it probably didn’t cross through George’s mind at the time, the connection to LaMarcus Aldridge makes sense on a couple levels. First off, just standing next to Turner for the first time today, it’s clear that I underestimated his athletic build and terrific shape. Based on how others berated his awkward running, slow foot-speed, and distaste for playing run-and-gun ball, I always pictured him to look odd in person — out of shape, slow, or thick. When the reality hit me in the face, however, it’s quite staggering how similar he appears to Aldridge.

Both are 6’11”, and both are in the 240-pound neighborhood. Aldridge certainly has a little more muscle to his body, considering he’s a 10-year pro, but it would take an up-close look to differentiate their body styles.

Austin, Texas also has memories of both, since they learned under Rick Barnes as Longhorns. Aldridge played two seasons and eventually became Texas’ identity en route to an Elite 8 finish during his sophomore year. Turner, on the other hand, decided that being misused for one season was enough and declared for the draft after losing in the first round.

It’s shocking, but Turner and Aldridge averaged the same amount of minutes per game (22.2) during their freshman seasons at Texas. Aldridge wasn’t necessarily a slow bloomer, as he was held back by an unfortunate hip injury as a freshman, only playing in 16 games. On top of that, he averaged only 9.7 shot attempts per 40 minutes.

Turner was actually considered the opposite, with his lower playing time being attributed to Barnes not believing in him. Turner didn’t explode out of the gates during his freshman year, taking more time to grow as a player. But, he still got a larger bulk of the offense (in proportion to his minutes) than Aldridge ever did — taking 13.6 shots per 40 minutes last year.

When told about George drawing the comparisons to Aldridge’ offense, Turner was humbled. As crazy as it may seem, he also acknowledged that Aldridge never came down to Texas last season to help work with him. It’s understandable, as he was in the middle of a contract year, and had Portland in the upper-echelon of the West for four months.

Nevertheless, that didn’t hold back Barnes from going the extra mile to find Turner a perfect diagram.

"“Coach Rick Barnes showed me a lot of video footage on LaMarcus Aldridge,” Turner said. He tried to teach me a lot of stuff."

In the short period of time Turner spent in Austin, the results were on display in the 34 games he played. George was definitely on to something with this kid’s offensive arsenal, and perhaps he done a little bit of film-watching himself:

It may just seem like a basic mid-range jumper, but there’s actually a special craft to it. One of Turner’s specialties (shown above) is the skill to gather directly into the shot, upon catching in post position. You can notice his fundamental technique of squaring his shoulders, and making a quick decision. You’ll often see big men hesitate, or take a very slow shot in these circumstances.

Turner’s is quick. Since Aldridge is a veteran and has better NBA spacing around him, he’s able to take his time before squaring up. But once he does, his release is even quicker than Turner’s. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say this is where the Pacers’ top rookie learned it from.

As you can also notice, both release points are high. It’s not a lower style of release, which is what Hibbert often had on his shots outside of 10 feet. Around the league, opponents have labeled Aldridge’s mid-ranger or 3-pointer as “the unblockable shot” because of this. Being 11 years younger, Turner is blessed with the same type of discipline on his shot — the timing, the arc, and the natural touch.

With the Pacers having an average usage rate of 22.8% coming from the wings alone (!!) this season — on top of having 34.6 total win shares from last season on the perimeter — it’s not realistic to expect Turner to have a massive offensive engagement. One can be hopeful that Vogel gives him the chances, but there’s too many shots to go around the arc. And there’s only one round ball.

That’s where Turner can take the time to embellish the other parts of his game. The most important one for this blue-collar city, as we know, is the defensive end.

"“I feel like being under Coach Vogel, since he is a defensive-minded coach, there’s a huge responsibility for me coming into this team. I have to fulfill the defensive responsibilities.”"

Indiana lost an enforcer at the rim that held opponents under 43% within five feet, so it’s imperative that someone steps in and mitigates the bleeding. If not, cover your eyes. A war that’s fought undermanned on the front line is a war that involves a lot of blood. Hibbert wanted to play under a different coach, with different players, in a fresh city. West wanted to achieve something he could never grab in New Orleans or Indiana.

Thus, the frontcourt is left for Turner, Ian Mahinmi, Jordan Hill, and Lavoy Allen. All three of the latter names are an average of 27.3 years old. This is the spotlight for a young kid like Turner, who could raise the eyebrows of Larry Bird in just a few astonishing performances. He has to bring it 110% defensively, making every moment of his playing time matter.

He did at Texas, when it seemed that very few people believed in him. With a team that supports him and a leader that’s eager to be a big brother figure, Turner should be the full-time starter by December.

Even if it doesn’t work out for Turner to fit into the rotation, he’s aware of one thing:  Adjustment takes time. Adjustment takes a full acceptance from all the new faces involved.  And let’s be clear … the Pacers have a plethora of new faces.

“We are all in this together,” Turner said.

“It really brings the focus to this being a team mentality. We all have to go out there and learn together, we all have to execute together. So, I think it’s going to be good for us. Especially from a bonding standpoint.”

All of a sudden, you can see glimpses of the monumental locker room figure Indiana lost in David West.

The reasons to like this kid are greatly outweighing any negatives you can say about him.

It doesn’t matter anyway. He’s too mature to let criticism keep him down.

More Pacers’ Media Day coverage/takeaways will be available tomorrow. You can find quotes and interview clips on Shane Young’s Twitter feed as well.

Shane Young is a credentialed Pacers columnist for HoopsHabit.com, and an NBA writer for BBallBreakdown.com.