Pacers' Bird still doesn't know why Lance Stephenson left

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Lance Stephenson could have earned a guaranteed $44 million if he'd stayed with the Indiana Pacers on a five-year contract.

Instead, he's Charlotte-bound after accepting two years at a guaranteed $18 million, plus a third year as a team option for the Hornets.

As Bob Kravitz of the Indy Star writes, the $9 million per year Stephenson can make through three years with Charlotte barely eclipses the $8.8 million he'd make each year of a possible five with Indiana.

The math left Pacers president Larry Bird confused by Stephson's decision to part ways with the organization. Bird suggested to the Star that the Pacers were willing to offer a shorter-term contract that would allow Stephenson to "cash in" should his game continue to grow.

"I really feel bad about losing him,'' Bird said. "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 the Indy Star report, the Pacers were also willing to give Stephenson a player option after four years, should he want to opt out. He and his agent, Alberto Ebanks, still thought his value should be in the eight-figure-a-year region.

From Kravitz:

When Bird met with Stephenson, his family and his agent the first night of free agency, he had a couple of five-year options and was sure one of them was going to be acceptable. But a few days later, Ebanks called back Bird and told him, "I don't think this is going to work. I don't believe you have the money available to re-sign Lance.''

Bird was stunned.

They ultimately went back and forth, contemplated different options, but the money was never right.

Bird supported Stephenson's work ethic, and said when the shooting guard was on, he was the Pacers' best asset. All ear blowing episodes aside...

"I'm going to miss the kid, no question," Bird said. "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.''