NBA Rumors: Indiana Pacers Not Expected To Sign Lance Stephenson?

The Indiana Pacers and Lance Stephenson have been one of the hottest rumors around the NBA over the past couple of weeks. He saw his option get declined by the Memphis Grizzlies, which made him an unrestricted free agent. That immediately opened up the onslaught of Pacers fans wanting him home, and Stephenson fed into the hype by favoriting multiple tweets on Twitter about returning to Indiana.

While a reunion between Stephenson and the Pacers would be great entertainment, it doesn’t sound like it will happen this offseason.

Larry Bird spoke out during a press conference this afternoon and said that there is a “very slim chance” that Stephenson will come back to Indiana this offseason. He did say that he had talked with Stephenson’s agent a couple of times, but it certainly doesn’t give fans hope that he will be back.

Bird on Lance: "I think Lance and his agent are doing the talking… Right now probably a very slim chance" on #Pacers reunion.

— Nate Taylor (@ByNateTaylor) July 8, 2016

Larry said he's spoken to Lance's agent, still likes him as a player, but takes a particular, veteran roster to add a player like Lance.

— Nate Taylor (@ByNateTaylor) July 8, 2016

Last season, Stephenson finished the year with the Grizzlies and showed flashes of his former self. He played in 26 regular season games with Memphis and started in three of them. In those appearances, Stephenson ended up averaging 14.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game.

There are still some attitude concerns with Stephenson, and Doc Rivers made it clear that he wasn’t happy with Stephenson’s defensive ability. Despite all of the critics, Stephenson is still a player that can make a major impact in the right situation.

At 25 years old, Stephenson still has a long career ahead of him in the NBA. If the Pacers decide not to pick him up this offseason, there will be another team more than happy to sign him. He will have his choice from a few different offers and the Grizzlies could end up being one of them.

Assuming the Pacers don’t sign Stephenson, there will be a lot of fans very disappointed.

Some Pacers writers had speculated that a deal had been completed between the Pacers and Stephenson and it spread like wildfire on social media. That report ended up being wrong and it disappointed a lot of fans. It is also yet another reason why fans should be very cautious when reading reports in the future.

Bird and Stephenson are still very close despite the comments that were made. They have stayed in contact since Stephenson left Indiana and Bird has been one of the biggest mentors that the talented shooting guard has had throughout his career.

It will be interesting to see what the rest of the offseason holds for Bird and the Pacers. They were able to bring in Jeff Teague, Thaddeus Young, Al Jefferson, and Jeremy Evans to bolster their roster. Many see them as a top-three team in the Eastern Conference barring other moves by teams in the conference.

Stephenson would be an upgrade over Rodney Stuckey off the bench, but Bird would have to find a trade for that to happen. If it were to happen, however, the Pacers would improve in the playmaking category and defensively.

Indiana likely isn’t done with offseason moves, as they will look to improve their bench. The starting lineup is probably already known, with Paul George, Monta Ellis, and Myles Turner joining Teague and Young.

Expect to hear plenty of rumors about the Pacers moving forward and Stephenson will likely be attached to some of them. There will also be other teams starting to show interest in Stephenson in the coming week or two. He is in the second tier of free agents and could end up signing in the near future.

Do you think the Indiana Pacers should pursue Lance Stephenson? Would he be a good fit for the current team that they have put together? Let us know your thoughts in the comment box below!

[Photo by Brandon Dill/AP Images]