Report: Lakers, Knicks, Bulls among six suitors for Evan Turner
The Celtics wing -- a former No. 2 overall draft pick -- could be in high demand
By
Matt Moore
•
2 min read
The Villain is in high demand.
With the start of NBA free agency, some speculated that Evan Turner might not get much interest and instead just return to the Celtics on a reasonable deal. While he might stay with the Green and White in Beantown, Turner's going to have options, as Sporting News reports that as many as six teams are looking at the former Ohio State star, including the Lakers.
On the opening night of free agency, Celtics free-agent wing Evan Turner is set to be a very popular man. There are at least six teams in the hunt for Turner, a source told Sporting News, and perhaps a seventh if Boston steps back into the fray.
Turner has been expected to be wooed by the Knicks and his hometown team, the Bulls. But the Pelicans, Mavericks, Lakers and Grizzlies are also preparing to bid for Turner, the source said. Some meetings will be arranged for the early stages of free agency, but nothing has been finalized.
Source: NBA free agency rumors: Lakers, Mavericks, Knicks among 6 bidding for Evan Turner
A quick rundown of these options:
- Pelicans: The Pels already have Tyreke Evans, a tall combo guard who can be mistake prone but is better defensively than Turner and struggles with his shot. But at small forward, he fills a need for the Pelicans and would give them trade options as well.
- Mavericks: Dallas is losing Chandler Parsons as a free agent, and Turner would give them kind of a discount version of Parsons as a playmaking combo-wing. It's a pretty steep downgrade, however.
- Lakers: The Lakers just handed Timofey Mozgov $64 million out of the gate, so who knows what they'll do, but giving Turner a market-level offer considering their talent at guard and wing would be perplexing. It would also likely involve an overpay considering where the franchise is at and wouldn't move it forward in a meaningful way.
- Grizzlies: Memphis has long been the home for misfit toys, and it has a desperate need for help on the wing. They need another creator, and Turner was just good enough defensively in a tight system last season under Brad Stevens to convince Memphis he could fit on that side of the ball as well. His versatility at the point guard, shooting guard, and wing spots makes this ideal.
- Knicks: They're said to be targeting Eric Gordon and already landed Joakim Noah, but they have the money to splurge on Turner and he would be a pretty great fit in the Triangle offense.
- Bulls: They could use another combo-guard to come off the bench and give them a boost, but overpaying him seems like a weird move with Jimmy Butler as their cornerstone.
Turner might wind up coming back to the Celtics on a discount. He's very close with Danny Ainge and understands the good thing he has in Boston. But it's clear he's going to have great options for what he wants to do with the next step in his career.
