Lance Stephenson Joins Lob City in Trade
After one dissappointing season with the Charlotte Hornets, Lance Stephenson is now a part of "Lob City." The Los Angeles Clippers acquired the 24-year-old shooting guard via a trade that sent forwards Matt Barnes and Spencer Hawes to the Charlotte Hornets, as reported by ESPN.
Stephenson took to his Twitter account late Monday night to thank the Hornets' organization and also express excitement about playing with the Clippers and helping them toward an NBA championship.
"Thank you to buzz city and the Hornets organization. While the past year didn't work out as I hoped it would, I really enjoyed my time in the city of Charlotte," Stephenson began tweeting. "I will thoroughly miss the Hornets fans and my teammates who were very supportive of me over the last year. I wish the Hornets success going forward and I'm looking forward to doing whatever I can to help bring a championship to Los Angeles and Clipper Nation."
Stephenson signed a three-year, $27 million deal with the Hornets last summer, but struggled this past season, only mustering 8.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.2 assists in the 61 games he played. Of those games, Stephenson only started in 25.
In addition to counting on Stephenson being the 6-foot-5 athletic swingman that they desire, head coach Doc Rivers and the Clippers are also counting on him to regain form from his 2013-14 season with the Indiana Pacers. That season saw Stephenson posting averages of 13.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game — all career highs.
Although the Clippers knocked out the 2014 NBA champion San Antonio Spurs during the first round of the playoffs, they lost a 3-1 lead and wound up losing to the Houston Rockets in the Western Conference semifinals. The Clippers are 0-7 all-time in the semifinals.
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(Photo: Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
