The Indiana Pacers started the season strong, banking on their stellar defense and offensive firepower of All-Star Paul George and shooting guard Lance Stephenson to build a commanding lead over the two-time defending champion Miami Heat in the race for the top seed in the East.
However the Pacers have slowed down in recent months, and a lot of rumors have surfaced regarding the team's chemistry.
Ric Bucher of Bleacher Report is suggesting that the entry of swingman Evan Turner has hurt the Pacers internally, with the talented Turner clashing with Stephenson over minutes.
Bucher added that his sources told him that Turner and Stephenson are not seeing each other eye-to-eye with both players having the same position. Turner and Stephenson are also free-agents to-be this summer, and would want to post good numbers in order to maximize their value in free agency.
Bucher also speculates that former Pacer Danny Granger, who was part of the deal that brought in Turner, presented no problem to Stephenson during his time with the Pacers. Granger was highly-respected in the locker room even by George, who has succeeded him as the franchise player.
Interestingly, All-Star Roy Hibbert was the first to give a hint to the media about the problems the Pacers are dealing with in the locker room. After the Pacers lost to the Washington Wizards last week, Hibbert was quoted by David Aldridge as saying: "Some selfish dudes in here. Some selfish dudes. I'm tired of talking about it. We've been talking about it for a month."
According to Bucher, Hibbert may have been referring to Turner. He added that in more than 100 minutes that they have been together on the court, Turner has only assisted on one Hibbert basket.
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