“I hate when they say the grass can’t be greener on the other side,” Myles Turner said on Friday, chin high as he was introduced as the newest member of the Milwaukee Bucks. “I’m confident enough to say the grass is going to be greener wherever I go.” He’ll be green, alright. Whether the grass follows is up to him. Milwaukee’s betting it will—and betting big.

As Turner sat on the stage, the Bucks’ official Instagram account posted a collage of their new star center with a quote that immediately went viral: “Seeing me in this Bucks green, my girlfriend told me, I look good in green, so seamless fit.” The team captioned it, “The color green is girlfriend approved. ✅” Turner quickly reposted it to his own story, tagging his girlfriend, Aysia Janelle, who then shared it herself. It was a lighthearted moment, but it came at the end of a week that left the Indiana Pacers and much of the NBA absolutely stunned.

The truth behind Turner’s shocking move to Milwaukee wasn’t about a lack of love for Indiana; it was about a hunger to keep winning. “For me, ultimately, it was about just staying competitive,” Turner confessed. “Two years ago, got to the Eastern Conference Finals. Obviously, last year, we got to the Finals. But being there, being a part of winning basketball has just changed my entire perspective on this league. I saw a chance to remain competitive here.” That chance in Indiana took a devastating hit in Game 7 of the Finals when superstar point guard Tyrese Haliburton injured his Achilles, an injury that will sideline him for the entire 2025-26 season. For Turner, staying with a team that had just lost its engine for a full year was a difficult proposition, as he did not want to waste his prime years in a transition year.

That desire to win was mirrored by the Bucks’ front office. General Manager Jon Horst explained that their entire offseason plan revolved around one question: “How can we take this team to the next level? How can we improve?” For Horst, the answer was clear. “And Myles is sitting there as the best free agent in all the market.” 

To clear the necessary cap space for Turner’s four-year, $107 million contract, Milwaukee made the audacious decision to waive and stretch the remaining $112.6 million on Damian Lillard’s contract. The move, the largest of its kind in NBA history, will leave a dead cap hit of over $22 million on their books for the next five seasons. And it wasn’t an easy decision by any means, as Doc Rivers alluded to.

“Dame…he’s just a great dude. Forget the basketball part,” Rivers said. “He’s done everything right throughout his career… So, he did all the good stuff.” But, as Rivers explained, “Stretching Dame’s contract, which was not easy to do… gave us more flexibility and we can sign more guys.” It was a price they were willing to pay to appease their superstar, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and stay in the championship hunt. And Myles Turner can exactly be the role of the dice the Bucks needed to take that next step.

Myles Turner might just be the perfect fit for the Bucks

The Bucks’ front office obviously sees the trade as a masterstroke. For them, Turner wasn’t just the best free agent available; he was the perfect piece to retool their team and “modernize their style of play,” as GM Jon Horst put it. HC Doc Rivers went even further, joking that if you were to draw the perfect center to pair with Giannis Antetokounmpo, “it was a picture of him.”

What makes him so perfect? At 29, Turner is a younger, more athletic version of the role Brook Lopez filled for years. He’s an elite rim protector who has twice led the league in blocks, but he also has the mobility to defend in space, a crucial skill in the modern NBA. Offensively, he’s a true stretch-five, having shot nearly 40% from three-point range last season.

That ability to pull defenders away from the basket will create wide-open lanes for Giannis to attack. “I’ve played against Giannis for quite some time now,” Turner said. “Very familiar with his game and what he’s capable of. I do see a seamless fit as well. He’s someone that is able to push the ball, get out in transition, create for the people.”

The decision to leave Indiana after a decade was clearly a heavy one for Turner. He acknowledged the gravity of the move by sending a message to the Pacers’ team group chat to break the news himself, rather than letting his teammates find out online. But he also made it clear he has no regrets. “There were alignment issues, I think on that side as far as me and them,” he said of the Pacers. “Out of respect to their organization… I’m not going to speak on that too much. But again, this was just the best decision for me moving forward.” That decision has now landed him in Milwaukee, a team that believes he’s the final piece to their championship puzzle.

The suddenness of it all left the Pacers reeling. President of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard admitted he was completely blindsided, finding out about the deal on social media. “I was shocked,” he said, revealing he thought he was still in good-faith negotiations to bring Turner back. That shock was echoed in the locker room. “It was a little shocking when it first happened,” said Andrew Nembhard, Turner’s former backcourt partner. “Obviously, I loved my time with Myles… He’s done a lot for me.”

However, despite the abrupt ending, Turner made sure to express his gratitude for the city that raised him from a teenage draft pick into one of the best centers in the league. His now-former superstar teammate, Tyrese Haliburton, had his own message of support, simply writing, “Nothing but love my brother.”

It was a classy final exchange, but even as Turner promised that “the 317 will always be home,” his departure serves as a stark reminder of the league’s new reality—a reality where loyalty and good-faith negotiations can be upended by a single, stunning move, leaving a franchise and its fans wondering how it all went so wrong.