When the Indiana Pacers make the long trip to Mumbai for the NBA India Games, they will bring with them Myles Turner, the reigning NBA blocks leader.
Turner has been a vital cog of the Pacers since the franchise drafted him four years ago. A key member of the frontcourt, he has played a huge role in the team finishing with winning records in the past couple of seasons.
Background
Turner was born in Bedford, Texas on March 24, 1996.
High school & College
Turner went to high school at Trinity High School in Euless, Texas.
However, while attending high school, Turner also played a lot of AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) basketball. Turner participated in multiple development tournament and camps in high school - LeBron camp, the NBPA Top 100 camp, Adidas Nationals, the Nike Big Man Skills Academy and the Elite 24 invitational.
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Towards the end of high school, the 6-10 big man competed in the 2014 McDonald's All-American Boys Game and finished with seven points and seven rebounds.
After he committed to the University of Texas but before he began playing for them, Turner represented the United States at the FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship. The United States went unbeaten through the tournament (5-0) and defeated Canada 113-79 for the gold medal, their third consecutive.
In his lone season with the Texas Longhorns, Turner averaged 10.1 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game, which landed him the Big 12 Freshman of the Year award and a Third-Team All-Big 12 selection.
NBA experience
Turner was selected by the Pacers with the 11th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft.
Right from his rookie season, Turner played a huge role for the Pacers.
A few months into his rookie season, Turner scored a career-high 31 points against the defending champion Golden State Warriors. He was named the Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month in February of 2016 and went on to make the All-Rookie Second Team.
Turner then averaged 28.1 minutes per game in the first round of the playoffs. He started in four of Indiana's seven games against the Toronto Raptors, who made their first Conference Finals appearance that season. Over those seven games, he recorded 23 total blocks.
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During the 2018-19 season, Turner took a huge step defensively. Playing 74 of the 82 games, he averaged a league-high 2.7 blocks per game, becoming the NBA blocks leader for the first time in his career.
Prior to the 2018-19 season, Turner signed a four-year, $72 million extension with the Pacers, keeping him in Indiana until 2023.
Here are Turner's numbers from each of the four seasons he's been with the Pacers:
| GP | PPG | RPG | BPG | FG% | |
| 2015-16 | 60 | 10.3 | 5.5 | 1.4 | .498 |
| 2016-17 | 81 | 14.5 | 7.3 | 2.1 | .511 |
| 2017-18 | 65 | 12.7 | 6.4 | 1.8 | .479 |
| 2018-19 | 74 | 13.3 | 7.2 | 2.7 | .487 |
Skill set
Turner can score a bit from the post, he is a good pick-and-roll finisher and lob threat while also having a reliable mid-range jumper in his arsenal. All this while recently evolving into one of the league's premier shot-blockers.
For more updates and stories on the NBA India Games 2019, you can follow NBA.com's page dedicated to the historic event.
