Myles Turner Role: ‘Elite’?

"May not be good as I once was, but I'm as good once as I ever was." The aforementioned song lyrics come from the late, great Toby Keith.

Myles Turner fits such a song lyric. Although he isn't the Defensive Player of the Year candidate from years past, he has moments where the beast shows its fangs. Such a reputation grants him notable company on HoopsHype's recently released top-100 list. The Indiana Pacers center no longer produces as the same 3-and-D center, but he can get the job done when necessary.

Turner averaged 17 points on 35 percent shooting from behind the 3-point line. According to Synergy Sports' database, Turner ranks as "average" defensively. Furthermore, the Pacers center's counting stats don't help his case either. Averaging his least amount of blocks since his third season, Turner blocked 1.9 rejections per game.

While he didn't rank as "poor," his metrics fell below average on guarding pick-and-roll ball-handler and isolation plays. These two sequences typically come from the offense forcing switches. Although it's not a talking point for Turner, such metrics suggest teams are hunting him on defense.

Admittedly, typing such a take feels strange. However, the numbers reveal he's nowhere near excelling in such departments.

However, despite such numbers, HoopHype ranked him among NBA-championship-level defenders.

Turner "earned" the No. 53 spot on HoopsHype's top-100 list.

Related: Pascal Siakam Rank in Top 100?

Just behind Turner is Boston Celtics Jrue Holiday, a two-time NBA champion and one of the league's more versatile defenders. Furthermore, Derrick White landed three spots ahead of Turner.

The narrative hasn't caught up to the numbers despite Turner's defensive metrics failing him this past season.

Perhaps Turner can turn around his production before it's too late.