The Indiana Pacers are back to their losing ways, dropping their second game in a row. In their last two games, the Pacers faced tough competition, including arguably the two best teams in the league: the Boston Celtics and the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Pacers dropped both games, putting them two games below .500 again. Indiana is 15-17 on the season, and while the two back-to-back losses were bad, Indiana’s long-time center, Myles Turner, made some history.
On Thursday, Turner entered the one percent of shot blockers of all time. Turner moved into the top 50 in blocks in NBA history.
Turner passes long-time Cleveland Cavaliers Zydrunas Ilgauskas, putting him at 1,332 blocks. This now puts Turner in elite company, as there are only four active players ahead of him. There are also a number of great shot blockers, including the top three on the list: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Dikembe Mutombo, and Hakeem Olajuwon.
Tuner needs three more blocks to tie Tyson Chandler and four more to surpass him as No. 49 all-time on the list. Turner didn’t record any on Friday; however, his next chance to do so will be on Sunday against the Celtics.
While those greats are all-timers and Hall of Famers, Turner is the only one to have played his entire career for just one team. The Pacers have been the big man’s only squad in the NBA. Hall of Famers Tim Duncan and David Robinson played for one team in their NBA careers—the San Antonio Spurs.
This accomplishment could go a long way in the NBA Hall of Fame talk. While Turner does not hold individual accolades like many others on the list, he still has a long way to go in his career. Turner has only played in 600 regular-season games, which the former University of Texas Longhorn cleared with his appearance on Friday.
Turner’s next step is to reach the 1,400 block mark, which he is on pace to do, or, at worst, he will hit in the first part of next season. A pair of former Pacers, Erick Dampier and Mark West, are near the 1,400 block mark.
With the exception of his rookie season, the 6’11” center has recorded at least 118 blocks each year. In his career, Turner averaged 2.2 blocks per game, and his best mark came in the 2020-21 season, in which he averaged 3.4 blocks per game.
As things stand, Turner is right around his carer average and has a total of 64 blocks through 30 games this season.
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