Why is Myles Turner’s Defensive Positioning Underrated by Analysts?
Why do analysts underrate Myles Turner’s defensive positioning? The Indiana Pacers’ center possesses defensive skills that are, quite frankly, not given enough credit. Oddly enough, certain facets of his game are often ignored by those who know a lot about NBA basketball.
This blog will explore the ignored side of Turner’s defense. More importantly, we’ll explain why his good defensive positioning is a big deal.
Understanding Myles Turner’s Defensive Skillset
In the NBA, Myles Turner has a unique ability to play defense. At 6’11” with a 7’4″ wingspan, Turner is built to protect the rim. Turner averaged 2.3 blocks per game in the 2022-2023 season, ranking among the best in the NBA. However, what often goes unnoticed is his excellent defensive positioning.
Additionally, Turner’s skill at play anticipation is tremendously valuable. It allows him to frequently alter his positioning to be more beneficial, as new offensive developments unveil themselves. This makes him not only a better shot-blocker in terms of positioning but also a better rim deterrent overall. And with all of this in mind, we should recognize that these plays are not merely associated with chance. They are strongly indicative of an intelligent player who reads the game well and effectively leads his team on defense.
- Average Number of Blocks: 2.3 per game
- Winning Shares for Defense: 4.5 in the 2022-2023 season
- Percentage of Field Goals Allowed at the Rim: 49.7%
Guarding many positions is what makes Turner valuable. He is a multi-position defender and can be an asset in many different sorts of defensive schemes. Being a really good defender counts for something, even if you don’t have the sort of conventional statistics that scream, “Look at me! I’m a good player!”
Why is Myles Turner’s Defensive Positioning Underrated by Analysts?
This question highlights a significant issue within the analysis of NBA players. Analysts often pay attention to the kind of metrics you can pen on the back of a basketball card, like blocks or steals. But even when you’re watching for those kinds of plays, it’s easy to underestimate just how hard good positioning is and how essential it is to effective defense. For instance, while Turner has elite block numbers, his positioning is critical to those statistics.
He often influences shots before they are taken by positioning himself effectively. His presence at the rim alters an offensive player’s decision-making. This is a less quantifiable but equally crucial aspect of Turner’s game. Furthermore, understanding spacing and timing are essential to defensive mechanics. And these are two elements in which Turner excels.
Think about this: in a crucial match-up with the Miami Heat, Turner prevented a multitude of shots from being successful. His uncanny ability to be in just the right place at just the right time allowed his fellow defenders to also be in prime position to recover from mistakes and to challenge other would-be scorers. This is defensive intelligence, pure and simple, and it shows that Turner is all about the smarts and the stats—mostly the good kind of stats you just can’t argue with.
Defensive Statistics That Tell the Story
Further investigation into Turner’s numbers sheds even more light on his defensive impact. During the 2022-2023 season, his defensive rating was 102.5, which was lower than the league average. This particular statistic suggests that when Turner is on the court, it is hard for opponents to score.
Turner also had a net rating of +7.3, reflecting the success the team was having while he was on the floor. This is an important factor in understanding why Turner might be underrated. Many analysts tend to focus on individual success, while the real story with Turner has been good, overall team performance when he plays.
- Rate Rating: 102.5
- Net Rating: 7.3
- Defensive Box Plus/Minus: 3.2
Turner’s defensive box plus/minus (DBPM) of 3.2 places him among the top defenders. This metric attempts to go beyond conventional statistics and get at the essence of what a player contributes when it comes to defense, especially team defense. When the DBPM was first introduced, I wrote a series of articles that attempted to explain what it was and what it wasn’t. I won’t go into all that here, but for our purposes, it’s enough to know that if you have a DBPM above 3.0, you are unbelievably good defensively.
Analysts and the Challenge of Recognizing Defensive Value
The NBA community frequently highlights offensive prowess, relegating defensive stars to the sidelines. It’s easy to see why analysts might overlook someone like Turner, who isn’t flashy but fulfills a vital role. If someone puts up 30 points in a game, that person’s performance is going to get noticed and talked about. But in terms of value and impact on winning—especially when not much separates the two teams on the scoreboard—Turner’s performance is as good as it gets for a center.
Here is where teamwork plays a crucial role. Turner’s association with his teammates works to amplify the impact of the persuasion unit. When he works with guard Tyrese Haliburton, for instance, the powerful duo serves to illustrate the point being made in the last chapter about how smart communication and clever positioning can amplify persuasive effects—not just in one-on-one situations, but for the entire defensive unit.
In addition, one cannot underestimate the significance of advanced metrics. Still, many analysts tend to focus on good old-fashioned stats. Unfortunately, this means they often misjudge the subtlety of Turner’s game. And that, in turn, leads to a lack of appreciation for how well he positions himself to make plays on the other end. Turner should be seen in a better light and get more love for how good he is at D and how valuable that makes him.
Conclusion: Time to Reassess Myles Turner’s Defensive Positioning
To conclude, why do analysts underrate Myles Turner’s defensive positioning? He has a set of truly unique skills that really tilt the game in the favor of the Pacers when he’s on the floor. His defensive stats back up his game-changing ability. But there’s more to it—more to him—than that. His qualitative impact on the game is something that not all analysts can see.
In the end, the intricate nature of basketball defense reveals the true importance of defensive positioning. When a player is as impactful on the defensive end as Turner is, you begin to understand that this craft can be more valuable than some of the more visible offensive talents. Analysts need to take this subtle aspect of the game into account when evaluating players, especially given the kind of currency that defensive work has in the modern NBA.
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