Per Woj Evan Turner and Lance Stephenson had fist fight day before G1

[sed522002]

On the eve of this Eastern Conference series, the wobbling No. 1 seed punctuated its final playoff preparations in a most self-destructive way: Two Indiana Pacers dragged a cursing, cut Evan Turner out of the Bankers Life Fieldhouse court, untangling him from a practice-floor fistfight with teammate Lance Stephenson.

Turner hadn't been the first Pacer to lose his temper with Stephenson these tumultuous several weeks, and Stephenson's relentlessly irritable nature suggests Turner won't be the last. These scrapes aren't uncommon in the NBA, but this confrontation had been weeks in the making and that reflected in the ferocity of the encounter, sources told Yahoo Sports.

"This stuff happens, but the timing wasn't ideal," one witness told Yahoo Sports.

These two guards have struggled together since the deadline deal brought Turner from Philadelphia to Indiana. Suddenly, Turner is learning to play without the ball in his hands, and Stephenson is relearning the balance of passing and shooting. Truth be told, there were probably Pacers willing to let Stephenson and Turner beat the dribble out of each other. Still, Luis Scola and David West finally grabbed an enraged Turner and separated Stephenson.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/pacers-fight-each-other-on-eve-of-playoffs--finally-take-swing-at-hawks-in-game-2-062419341.html

[Donoghus]

Anything involving Stephenson doesn't exactly surprise me.  Just an irritable fellow.

[GreenWarrior]

Anything involving Stephenson doesn't exactly surprise me.  Just an irritable fellow.

he reminds me of Stephen Jackson.

[Roy H.]

Lance Stephenson -- the same guy who threw his girlfriend down a flight of stairs and who was charged with sexual assault for groping a classmate -- is a jerk?  I'm shocked.

[obnoxiousmime]

This just proves the old adage about how you can have one knucklehead on a team and survive, but two or more and things fall apart.

Bynum + Turner + Stephenson = 3 Knuckleheads.

Actually, to be fair I don't think I've heard of Turner ever having behavioral issues. However, these three guys are all going to be free agents this summer and I'm sure that causes friction when they're supposed to play unselfishly on the court. This incident is going to cost them a lot of money!

[D.o.s.]

This just proves the old adage about how you can have one knucklehead on a team and survive, but two or more and things fall apart.

Bynum + Turner + Stephenson = 3 Knuckleheads.

Actually, to be fair I don't think I've heard of Turner ever having behavioral issues. However, these three guys are all going to be free agents this summer and I'm sure that causes friction when they're supposed to play unselfishly on the court. This incident is going to cost them a lot of money!

I'm not sure about that -- Stephenson will still be paid pretty well, assuming he gets his stuff together during their playoff run.

Lance Stephenson -- the same guy who threw his girlfriend down a flight of stairs and who was charged with sexual assault for groping a classmate -- is a jerk?  I'm shocked.

Right? As long as he can play, I guess - Josh Leuke is still pitching for the Rays. 

[Fafnir]

Lance Stephenson -- the same guy who threw his girlfriend down a flight of stairs and who was charged with sexual assault for groping a classmate -- is a jerk?  I'm shocked.

Yeah I'd stay far far away from Stephenson.

Between George/Hibbert apparently not getting along and Stephenson being a jerk no wonder their chemistry is a mess.

[obnoxiousmime]

This just proves the old adage about how you can have one knucklehead on a team and survive, but two or more and things fall apart.

Bynum + Turner + Stephenson = 3 Knuckleheads.

Actually, to be fair I don't think I've heard of Turner ever having behavioral issues. However, these three guys are all going to be free agents this summer and I'm sure that causes friction when they're supposed to play unselfishly on the court. This incident is going to cost them a lot of money!

I'm not sure about that -- Stephenson will still be paid pretty well, assuming he gets his stuff together during their playoff run.

Lance Stephenson -- the same guy who threw his girlfriend down a flight of stairs and who was charged with sexual assault for groping a classmate -- is a jerk?  I'm shocked.

Right? As long as he can play, I guess - Josh Leuke is still pitching for the Rays. 

I meant "lot of money" as like 1-3 million less per year. I can see a few previous suitors shying away due to this incident, though obviously it just takes one team to make a high offer.

It's also possible with a poor playoff run the Pacers re-examine their roster and attempt a sign-and-trade since Stephenson is one of their few tradeable assets.

[sed522002]

Lance Stephenson -- the same guy who threw his girlfriend down a flight of stairs and who was charged with sexual assault for groping a classmate -- is a jerk?  I'm shocked.

Yeah I'd stay far far away from Stephenson.

Between George/Hibbert apparently not getting along and Stephenson being a jerk no wonder their chemistry is a mess.

I didn't know that...I do know that something is definitely wrong with their chemistry (the team) and I hope they figure it out or they'll barely make it to the 2nd round.

[D.o.s.]

Lance Stephenson -- the same guy who threw his girlfriend down a flight of stairs and who was charged with sexual assault for groping a classmate -- is a jerk?  I'm shocked.

Yeah I'd stay far far away from Stephenson.

Between George/Hibbert apparently not getting along and Stephenson being a jerk no wonder their chemistry is a mess.

I didn't know that...I do know that something is definitely wrong with their chemistry (the team) and I hope they figure it out or they'll barely make it to the 2nd round.

I don't know if they don't get along on a personal level, but they've been pretty open about airing disagreements about each other's play during the slump.

[GreenWarrior]

I mentioned this in another thread.

I was listening to felger & mazz a couple weeks ago and germaine wiggins was on and he said he had friends close to the pacers players that told him that one of the players slept with another players girlfriend and that since then the chemistry has been gone from the team.

like I said before take it for what it's worth but there's definitely something "out of the norm" going on with this team.

[Roy H.]

I mentioned this in another thread.

I was listening to felger & mazz a couple weeks ago and germaine wiggins was on and he said he had friends close to the pacers players that told him that one of the players slept with another players girlfriend and that since then the chemistry has been gone from the team.

like I said before take it for what it's worth but there's definitely something "out of the norm" going on with this team.

If you do an internet search for this, it's strongly suggested that the story is rubbish.

[BigAlTheFuture]

Indiana is so overrated. George is overrated, Stephenson is overrated, Hibbert is the most overrated player in the league. They have ways to go before they can dethrone Miami. This is sad if they're the biggest competition to Lebron in the Eastern Conference. Hopefully the Wizards or Raptors take the leap next year to contenders.

[Fafnir]

I mentioned this in another thread.

I was listening to felger & mazz a couple weeks ago and germaine wiggins was on and he said he had friends close to the pacers players that told him that one of the players slept with another players girlfriend and that since then the chemistry has been gone from the team.

like I said before take it for what it's worth but there's definitely something "out of the norm" going on with this team.

If you do an internet search for this, it's strongly suggested that the story is rubbish.

Yeah I don't buy into that rumor. But on the court you can see that George and Hibbert don't really mesh great. Then you hear them take shots at each other via the media and hear reports of them repeatedly hashing out issues earlier in the season even when things were going well.

[obnoxiousmime]

I mentioned this in another thread.

I was listening to felger & mazz a couple weeks ago and germaine wiggins was on and he said he had friends close to the pacers players that told him that one of the players slept with another players girlfriend and that since then the chemistry has been gone from the team.

like I said before take it for what it's worth but there's definitely something "out of the norm" going on with this team.

If you do an internet search for this, it's strongly suggested that the story is rubbish.

"Germaine Wiggins"? The former Patriots tight end Jermaine Wiggins?

Somehow Delonte West has got to be involved in this.