Indiana Pacers President Larry Bird was confused over Lance Stephenson's decision to leave the Indiana Pacers and jump ship to the Charlotte Hornets. One of the reason is that Stephenson declined the offer given by the Pacers for a five-year, $44 million contract offer and instead signed a three-year, $27.4 million deal with the Hornets.
It can be remembered that Bird is a long time believer of Stephenson. He even picked the Brooklyn-born guard in the second round of the 2010 NBA draft. He was putting his effort in molding the young Stephenson ton becoming a top player for the Pacers.
Stephenson is also appreciative of Bird's influence to his career and growth saying that he would definitely miss Bird as was provided in a statement given by his agent, Alberto Ebanks which also includes the line "Lance will miss the city, the team and the mentor who helped transform him into the dynamic player he has become."
According to the statement "Stephenson's "undying love for Larry Bird and for his [Pacers] teammates" made it "a tough decision." But he still opted to choose and sign for the Hornets because of it's fewer years.
Larry Bird talk to Bob Kravitz of the Indianapolis Star and commented regarding Stephenson transfer saying "I really feel bad about losing him. I hope it doesn't interfere with our relationship. But I did what I could possibly do to keep him here. Even if he didn't have any other offers, I was committed to giving him that $44 million because I believe in the kid. If you look at our roster, we have five or six guys in the last year of their deals, plus David (West) and Roy (Hibbert) can opt out, so don't you think I wanted to keep Lance and Paul (George) locked into long-term deals?"
According to Bird, he would have understood Stephenson's reason if he would left the team for greener pasture but he saw the transfer as a bad deal.
He said "It's just disappointing. When I'd go to practices, when he was on, he was by far our best player. And he worked. If you work as hard as he does, you're going to get better. I'm going to miss the kid, no question. And he's growing up. That stuff he pulled in the playoffs, that was out of the blue. But I knew how good Lance was and the value he brought to our team."
