Indiana Pacers: 5 bold predictions for 2017-18 NBA season

1. Lance Stephenson will emerge as a Sixth Man of the Year candidate

After three years of being irrelevant as an NBA player, Lance Stephenson returned to Indiana late last season and seemed to reignite his once-promising career.

Stephenson had been plagued by poor play and injuries since leaving the Pacers as a free agent in 2014, but he performed so well in six regular season games and four playoff games in the spring of 2017 that he is now looked upon as a key member of the new-look Indiana club.

Lance Stephenson is projected to be the team’s sixth man, and he certainly has the talent to excel in that role. In fact, it should suit Stephenson so well that he will likely be among the best sixth men in the league this season.

Stephenson has always had high-level talent, but he had a lot of growing up to do upon entering the NBA in 2010. His struggles appear to have humbled him, and his attitude and maturity have improved markedly since his early days with the Pacers.

He will play significant minutes off the bench this season as the anchor of the second unit, so the opportunity will be there if Stephenson is physically and mentally ready to seize it.

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If Lance Stephenson can continue on this upward path and put it all together this season, he has a chance to become the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year in 2018.