The Pacers brought back Lance Stephenson on a three-year deal last week:
Indiana Pacers, Lance Stephenson agree to 3-year, $12 million deal, league sources tell ESPN. First two guaranteed. Team option on third.
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) March 29, 2017
Stephenson last played for Indiana in 2013-14, the season that featured the memorable collapse of the Pacers down the stretch, including a Stephenson/Evan Turner practice brawl.
Stephenson had been a free agent, and it’s unclear just who the Pacers were bidding against, but Larry Bird is apparently willing to do anything to demonstrate to Paul George that Indiana is serious about building a contending team around him.
In his first game back with the Pacers, Stephenson had 4 points in 18 minutes in a double overtime loss at Cleveland. But tonight was his first game back in Indianapolis as a member of the team, and as he entered the game, the Indy crowd gave him quite a hand:
Lance Stephenson checks into the @Pacers game as fans at @TheFieldhouse give him a LOUD ovation in his return home. #GoPacers pic.twitter.com/cKjLxyqUor
— Bally Sports Indiana (@BallySportsIN) April 4, 2017
Considering Stephenson was probably the fifth-best player on those good Pacer teams, and has been gone for a few years now, it’s really nice to see the crowd recognize that contribution, even retroactively.
Stephenson then went off, scoring 12 points in 25 minutes on 5-10 shooting, propelling the Pacers to a key 108-90 win over the Raptors. Indiana is trying to nail down a playoff spot (which could mean a rematch with Toronto), so anything Stephenson can provide toward that aim is key.
Of course, with Lance Stephenson, you also get stuff like this:
Yup Lance Stephenson is back,,,doing dumb stuff, making people mad pic.twitter.com/gi78JvoX2Y
— Gifdsports (@gifdsports) April 5, 2017
Perhaps more than any other organization, the Pacers knew exactly what they were getting with Stephenson, and this is just another example of that. And if Indiana does get their rematch with the Raptors, it’s likely going to be a bulletin board moment for Toronto.
Welcome back, Lance.
