Tyrese Haliburton Injury May Influence Pacers' Plan for Myles Turner

Tyrese Haliburton tore his Achilles in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, taking away any chance that the Indiana Pacers had of winning a title. The Pacers needed him on the floor in that final game.

Haliburton led the game in made threes despite only playing seven minutes. Not only did the injury knock him out of the final game of the season, but it will keep him out for all of next year.

His injury changes everything for the Pacers, including how they might attack this offseason. Myles Turner's future could suddenly be in jeopardy.

Turner is a free agent for the first time in his career after spending his first ten years with the Pacers. There are now questions about whether or not the Pacers want to go into the luxury tax to keep him.

They were all for it when they thought they had Haliburton next season. Now that he will miss the year, will Herb Simon be willing to pay the luxury tax? That's a major question that has to be answered.

It's still very likely that the Pacers decide to keep Turner, although Turner may have cost himself some money with his performance in the NBA Finals. He's still the top center on the market, though.

Turner has indicated interest in returning to the Pacers, and Indiana wants him back. How Simon views the luxury tax in the wake of Haliburton's injury will determine how they improve the roster.

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It would be a mistake for the Pacers not to bring Turner back. They don't have any contingency plans in place to replace him. Quite frankly, the depth behind him is bad.

The Pacers are a team that can still contend for the title next year in a weakened East. They need some leaps from Andrew Nembhard, Bennedict Mathurin, and Jarace Walker to get there.

Turner will need to be better in the playoffs, as well. This team will still make the playoffs without Haliburton. They're too talented not to.

This season, Turner averaged 15.6 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game.

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