Q&A: Lance Stephenson

Courtesy of Rick Bonnell 

Bonnell: How did all this come together so suddenly?

"I was already interested. After the meeting I felt very comfortable – that this organization believes in me."

What role did Jordan's presence serve at the meeting?

"He played a big role. He told me what he likes about me, he told me what I need to calm down on. He told me how I can contribute to the team. And he told me he believed in my talent. He likes my competitive edge."

Talk about that edge

"I love to win. When I'm on the court I don't have friends. I'm all about business and all about winning. I'm definitely going to try to be a leader on this squad, and bring winning habits here."

"I feel like I've grown a lot – I'm more of a leader. I learned the game while watching the pros in front of me. Now that I'm on my second contract, I feel I can bring more to the table.

Surprised you aren't still a Pacer?

"I'm definitely surprised. But I'm happy here. I can definitely help this program. It's a family here. I'm definitely going to miss Larry Bird. But it's a business, and I feel like here is more of a family. Lets go get wins."

You said you're a lot more than the guy who blew in LeBron's ear. Could you expand on that?

"I definitely got overshadowed by blowing in LeBron's ear. He's one of the greatest players in the game. So by me doing that to him, it became real big. It overshadowed what I can do on the court – I'm a playmaker, a defender and a leader on and off the court. I've just got to change that around and learn from it."