According to Paul George, Lance Stephenson bolted for Charlotte this summer because he thinks he can become an All-Star there.
George admits that the Pacers lost their focus last season, but he thinks they have what it takes to reach the NBA Finals next year.
With Stephenson gone, PG plans to shoot the basketball more often. A hell of a lot more.
Per Yahoo:
As for the off-court drama, George said: “We had no locker room issues. You are going to clash. You got guys that got into it. But there was nothing that broke our chemistry. We were still [close] as a team.”
“(Stephenson) did that because he wants to come into his own,” George said. “That’s not to say he couldn’t do that in Indiana. But I think the fresh start gives him the ability to lead a team and take what he got from us to Charlotte. He is a player that wants to be an All-Star, wants to be a superstar in this league. So I think he made that move based on that.”
“Coming into next season I need to be in the 25-30-point mark,” said George, who averaged 21.7 points last season. “I got to get back to that old Kobe, T-Mac, 25-shots-a-night kind of guy.”
