Lance Stephenson & Pacers Reach Contract Impasse

Lance Stephenson and the Pacers have reached an impasse reports Chris Broussard of ESPN. The Pacers offered the free agent wing a 5-year, $44-million deal yesterday, after making biographical film about Brooklyn “Born Ready” star’s time in Indy as part of their pitch. Despite the red carpet treatment, Stephenson declined the offer and is in talks with other teams.

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General Managers who spoke with Michael Scotto at Sheridan Hoops last month vacilated when asked what Stephenson’s value might be after his various hijinks in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Heat.

“He probably hurt himself at some level with his immaturity during the playoffs,” the general manager told SheridanHoops. “However, clearly his talent is evident so I expect a team to make him a fairly significant offer probably in the range of $8-10 million (per season) for three years. On talent alone, he probably gets $10-12 million (per season) for three or four years.”

Another GM said Stephenson was ““Mid-level at best. If the season ended at the All-Star Break, $6-8 million. Now, $4-6 million.”

So Indiana’s offer of 8.8 million per year seems to fall in line with what he’s valued at around the league, and might even be larger than what some GM’s are comfortable offering after his antics in the Conference Finals. Still, all that might not stop Charlotte, the Lakers or Chicago from offering Stephenson something like four years for $40 million. Even though Indiana is the only team who can offer Stephenson a fifth year, his agent and Lance seem to think they can get eight figures a year somewhere else.

For what it’s worth, Lance has posted a couple pics to IG about NBA free agency. He uploaded this pic a few hours before the official start on Jul7 1:

Then added the caption “Feel blessed” when it seemed he was watching the movie the Pacers put together as part of their negotiations to re-sign.

How much is Lance Stephenson worth after his behavior in the playoffs?

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