NBA Free Agency Rumors: Indiana Pacers Going after Lance Stephenson?

Jun 29, 2016 10:15 AM EDT

Shooting guard Lance Stephenson recently became an unrestricted free agent after the Memphis Grizzlies declined his player option for next season that's worth $9.4 million. Shortly after becoming a free agent, various rumors about the Indiana Pacers going after him started to emerge.

Stephenson signed with the Grizzlies after leaving the Los Angeles Lakers in 2016. During his first and only season with the Memphis franchise, he averaged 14.2 points per game.

According to Yahoo Sports!, the Grizzlies may have decided to decline Stephen's option for next season in order to free up their cap space. They can then use this to get another player or re-sign Mike Conley, who is also a free agent.

As for Stephenson, he can still re-sign with the Grizzlies if they offer him a contract. However, the new contract will probably come with a significantly discounted offer. Of course, if there are other offers on the table, Stephen will most likely go with the one with a higher and with the team that he likes.

There are no official statements yet regarding the teams that are planning on signing the 25-yer-old guard but shortly after becoming a free agent, Twitter exploded with fans urging the Pacers to get Stephenson.

If this happens, it will serve as a reunion between Stephenson and Indiana. After all, they were together from 2010 to 2014, which makes the Pacers the only team that Stephenson had a long-term contract with.

For fans of Indiana, bringing back Stephenson will generally be good for the team especially because of his ball-handling abilities and defensive plays.

"Lance Stephenson is an unrestricted free agent," Tweeter user Grant Afseth posted. "Pacers need defense and a capable offensive player at SG."

Another user even noted that Stephenson could serve as the Pacers' ultimate weapon against LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

"Pacers need Lance Stephenson back," user Standeford tweeted. "He's the modern day John Starks kryptonite to LeBron."

Stephenson even seemingly joined in in fueling the rumors by liking tweets related to his possible return to Indiana. But then again, despite these rumors, his Pacers comeback will still depend on what team president Larry Birds thinks about this matter.