Lance Stephenson posts strong game in Pacers' Game 1 loss

Indiana Pacers guard Lance Stephenson played 27 minutes off the bench against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday, scoring 16 points with seven rebounds, three assists and no turnovers.

What It Means:

Stephenson was essentially playing backup point guard for most of the game and he played a lot in crunch time. Considering the Pacers really struggled to defend the pick and roll and Kyrie Irving without Stephenson, expect him to play heavy minutes as the series goes forward.

Without yet accounting for his playoff minutes surge, our models project Stephenson for 8.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists over 21.7 minutes on Monday in Game 2.