Did the Bucks make a mistake signing Turner?

Turner was signed to a 4-year $108 million dollar extension this offseason and was expected to be a two-way big, initiating Milwaukee's offense, providing spacing, and anchoring the defense. But instead, Turner has been subpar and phased out late in games.

Myles Turner is 6'11 and averaging 5.7 rebounds. Myles Turner hasn't averaged lower than 15 points in three years, this year he is averaging 12.6. Not only has he played well below is $25 million dollar clip for the season, but he hasn't helped the Bucks win.

Most alarmingly, Turner is someone who should be a closer for the Buck's, an anchor late in games, but instead he is averaging the 8th most minutes in the fourth quarter on the entire team (5.5 minutes). Turner is the team's second highest paid player, unacceptable, and inexcusable, even from Doc Rivers.

It appears, Turner hasn't earned coach River's trust, and it is showing with the closing lineups, Bobby Portis over Turner, Jericho Sims over Turner.

Myles Turner has 15 rebounds, over the last six games, and the Bucks have lost 10 of their last 12. When Giannis is out, Turner is the guy who needs to step up, and he has yet to prove he can do that in a Bucks uniform.

Myles Turner isn’t without flaws--he needs to play with more confidence and a stronger sense of aggression, especially on the glass and around the rim--but that still doesn’t warrant how far he’s slipped in the rotation. He brings far more on both ends than Sims, whose offense is extremely limited, and Portis, who continues to struggle defensively.

That’s why Doc Rivers has to let Turner work through the rough spots. The Bucks need what he provides, particularly as they keep dropping in the Eastern Conference standings. Each loss only adds pressure and nudges the possibility of a Giannis trade closer to reality. If Milwaukee were thriving in this stretch, shelving Turner might be defensible. Under these circumstances, it isn’t.

Right now, the Bucks aren’t getting what they paid for, and Turner hasn’t been put in a position to change that. Unless Doc Rivers finds a way to unlock what Turner brings, this move may quickly start looking like a mistake by a franchise already running out of margin for error.