http://www.hoopsworld.com/nba-am-lop...playoff-ticket
By the way, did Darren Williams provide us with a nice audition yesterday or what
Pacers’ Lance Stephenson Patiently Waiting: In 2011, the Indiana Pacers clinched their first postseason berth since 2006 and proved to a pesky opponent for the top-seeded Chicago Bulls before being bounced in the first round.
Not resting on their laurels the team acquired underrated shooting guard George Hill from the San Antonio Spurs on draft night, signed former All-Star forward David West in free agency and before the season began traded for rugged forward Louis Amundson to further bolster their frontcourt depth.
The result?
The Pacers have quickly established themselves as a deep and talented team to be reckoned with early in the season.
But when there is loads of talent on a roster, someone has to be left out of the nightly rotation even though on most teams the player would receive minutes.
Enter second year guard Lance Stephenson who is currently caught up in the numbers game.
However, instead of sulking, Stephenson is enjoying the team’s winning, staying patient, using this season as a learning experience and appreciating his boost playing time compared to last season.
“It gives me confidence,” Stephenson told HOOPSWORLD regarding the increase of his on court time. “All I need is the confidence knowing that I can play with the guys on the floor and the sky’s the limit. The minutes that I get, I love the minutes and I’m going to keep working hard so I can get more. It helps me. I think it helped me last year, not playing to see how other players play and really be like, looking for the little things that people do and try to add it to my game so when I get on the court it will come easy.”
One of the toughest adjustments for ballyhooed players to make entering the professional ranks is accepting a more limited role.
Stephenson says the adjustment period wasn’t a long one, but the added focus on defense was tough to get accustomed to from the start.
“Defensive-wise it was hard because I didn’t know really know how to play help side and stuff like that because in college we just play hard defense and get away with little stuff,” Stephenson said. “But when I got here [Indiana] I really got exposed because I didn’t know where to be at, whether to be at the right spots and I learned that within last year and this year.”
The Pacers are currently 14-6 and rank fifth in the Eastern Conference with head coach Frank Vogel at the helm.
Stephenson believes Vogel is one of the primary reasons for the team’s early success, being able to relate to the players and keep egos in check.
“I love him,” Stephenson said. “He’s doing a great job. He’s on the same page with everybody on the team. He doesn’t shortcut anybody, he tells the truth, he tells them what they need to work on and he’s just really honest and that’s what we need in a coach and he’s helping us a lot with being a great coach like that.”
Another coach Stephenson gives praise to in his development is Pacers assistant Brian Shaw who had a fourteen year career as a player. Shaw has worked extensively with Stephenson on his defense as a bigger off guard.
“It’s a great because he’s a big guy just like me and he tells me that it was hard for him to hold small guys so he’d use his arms sometimes and do little stuff to make him on better on defense,” Stephenson told HOOPSWORLD. “Every time I come out of the game I ask him, ‘what do you think I did wrong? What do you think I need to work on when I get in again?’ and he helps me a lot.”
As the Pacers continue to win together, Stephenson has noticed a difference in the locker room amongst his teammates – more confidence and a bit of a swagger emerging.
“We’re more confident about ourselves, more than last year,” Stephenson said. “We know we can play with other teams now, we know we can match up well with anybody so if we just keep playing hard it will come.”
Nice to hear that, I love the chemistry that is happening here and I really think were on to something special, not ECF, but I see us possibly making it to the seocnd round
Not resting on their laurels the team acquired underrated shooting guard George Hill from the San Antonio Spurs on draft night, signed former All-Star forward David West in free agency and before the season began traded for rugged forward Louis Amundson to further bolster their frontcourt depth.
The result?
The Pacers have quickly established themselves as a deep and talented team to be reckoned with early in the season.
But when there is loads of talent on a roster, someone has to be left out of the nightly rotation even though on most teams the player would receive minutes.
Enter second year guard Lance Stephenson who is currently caught up in the numbers game.
However, instead of sulking, Stephenson is enjoying the team’s winning, staying patient, using this season as a learning experience and appreciating his boost playing time compared to last season.
“It gives me confidence,” Stephenson told HOOPSWORLD regarding the increase of his on court time. “All I need is the confidence knowing that I can play with the guys on the floor and the sky’s the limit. The minutes that I get, I love the minutes and I’m going to keep working hard so I can get more. It helps me. I think it helped me last year, not playing to see how other players play and really be like, looking for the little things that people do and try to add it to my game so when I get on the court it will come easy.”
One of the toughest adjustments for ballyhooed players to make entering the professional ranks is accepting a more limited role.
Stephenson says the adjustment period wasn’t a long one, but the added focus on defense was tough to get accustomed to from the start.
“Defensive-wise it was hard because I didn’t know really know how to play help side and stuff like that because in college we just play hard defense and get away with little stuff,” Stephenson said. “But when I got here [Indiana] I really got exposed because I didn’t know where to be at, whether to be at the right spots and I learned that within last year and this year.”
The Pacers are currently 14-6 and rank fifth in the Eastern Conference with head coach Frank Vogel at the helm.
Stephenson believes Vogel is one of the primary reasons for the team’s early success, being able to relate to the players and keep egos in check.
“I love him,” Stephenson said. “He’s doing a great job. He’s on the same page with everybody on the team. He doesn’t shortcut anybody, he tells the truth, he tells them what they need to work on and he’s just really honest and that’s what we need in a coach and he’s helping us a lot with being a great coach like that.”
Another coach Stephenson gives praise to in his development is Pacers assistant Brian Shaw who had a fourteen year career as a player. Shaw has worked extensively with Stephenson on his defense as a bigger off guard.
“It’s a great because he’s a big guy just like me and he tells me that it was hard for him to hold small guys so he’d use his arms sometimes and do little stuff to make him on better on defense,” Stephenson told HOOPSWORLD. “Every time I come out of the game I ask him, ‘what do you think I did wrong? What do you think I need to work on when I get in again?’ and he helps me a lot.”
As the Pacers continue to win together, Stephenson has noticed a difference in the locker room amongst his teammates – more confidence and a bit of a swagger emerging.
“We’re more confident about ourselves, more than last year,” Stephenson said. “We know we can play with other teams now, we know we can match up well with anybody so if we just keep playing hard it will come.”
Nice to hear that, I love the chemistry that is happening here and I really think were on to something special, not ECF, but I see us possibly making it to the seocnd round
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