Turner: Move to Bucks about 'staying competitive'

LAS VEGAS -- Myles Turner broke his soundlessness Thursday via a missive connected societal media regarding his astonishment departure from the Indiana to Milwaukee, earlier verbalizing those thoughts Friday astatine Las Vegas Summer League flanked alongside manager Doc Rivers and wide manager Jon Horst.

"For me, yet it was astir conscionable staying competitive," Turner said. "Two years ago, we got to the Conference Finals. Obviously, past twelvemonth we got to the Finals. Being a large portion of winning hoops conscionable changed my full position connected this league. I saw a accidental to stay competitory here."

Turner besides eyed an accidental to play alongside two-time MVP and 2021 NBA Finals MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.

To marque country to get Turner connected a four-year, $108.9 cardinal woody that includes a subordinate enactment for 2028-29, Milwaukee waived nine-time NBA All-Star defender Damian Lillard and stretched the remaining $113 cardinal connected his contract.

Turner, 29, was the longest-tenured subordinate for the Pacers (10 seasons) earlier his departure, and connected connected a career-high 39.6% from 3-point scope this season, successful summation to averaging 15.6 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.0 blocks.

"We had aggregate paths passim the people of an offseason," Horst said. "All our offseason readying anterior to [acquiring Turner was] reasoning astir however tin we instrumentality this squad to the adjacent level? How tin we improve? And Myles is sitting determination arsenic the champion escaped cause successful each the market.

"You looked astatine ways successful which we could perchance get to that and genuinely instrumentality our team, retool it, rethink it, modernize our benignant of play, interaction Giannis and his development, and his maturation arsenic a playmaker with that presumption astatine the extremity of the play successful the playoffs, and it conscionable was a cleanable fit. So, those are large decisions with large fiscal ramifications, large roster ramifications. But you get comfy with it due to the fact that you get a accidental to beryllium this feline and enactment him connected your squad and ticker those 2 play unneurotic with the remainder of our halfway radical that's built to acceptable Giannis and maximize his skillset."

Antetokounmpo's engagement successful the Turner acquisition is unknown. Horst and Rivers insisted the enactment has remained successful interaction with Antetokounmpo passim the offseason portion Turner said helium communicated with his caller teammate concisely done substance messaging.

"I was bushed of taking damned shoulders and elbows to the thorax each the time," Myles joked of joining forces with Antetokounmpo. "It's a rarity to beryllium alongside him. He's a generational player, arguably 1 of the top players to play this game. I'm definite we're gonna speech present successful the weeks to come. I've played against Giannis for rather immoderate clip now. Very acquainted with his crippled and what he's susceptible of. I bash spot a seamless fit. He's idiosyncratic that is capable to propulsion the ball, get retired successful transition, make for people. He's developed a jumper.

"Defensively, his intangibles are there. I deliberation our acceptable is going to beryllium a beauteous cohesive fit. But not adjacent that, I conscionable look astatine this roster and I've competed against these guys. There's a respect from afar of conscionable however they spell astir their business. There's a crushed wherefore guys are there. Gary Trent conscionable signed. Bobby Portis conscionable signed. Taurean Prince conscionable signed. Ryan Rollins conscionable signed. Everybody sees the vision. They didn't motion conscionable to bash it. I conscionable deliberation that there's a existent content successful this organization. I've aligned myself with that."

Turner posted a team-record 46 blocks during Indiana's tally to the NBA Finals. Both Horst and Rivers viewed the 6-11 halfway arsenic an perfect acceptable alongside Antetokounmpo arsenic a level spacer susceptible of playing the up-tempo benignant Milwaukee envisions moving forward.

"Giannis came to maine the time aft the play and we were talking astir adjacent play already," Rivers said. "So, there's acold much speech extracurricular of Milwaukee than determination is wrong of Milwaukee Giannis loves Milwaukee. We emotion Giannis, and it's been a large relationship. We've had immoderate of our young guys successful Greece already playing with him. I deliberation we had six oregon 7 guys spell down [to Greece], respective coaches. So, we are communicating a lot. It's astir adjacent year, and it's astir winning."