Curious Case of Lance Stephenson

[adrock]

I saw this article linked over on BCN and thought it would spark some good discussion over here.

Link

The most interesting part is buried in the comments section, where a man that claims to be Lance's father (and I have no reason to doubt) says this:

Originally Posted by STRETCH, 2/14 @ 2:19 pm

I’m so proud of my son. From the time he was born I knew he was special. When I realized he could play the sport that I loved (Basketball) at a high level it was a dream come true. He was taught to play the game for the love of the sport not for the love of the money it could bring.

We have been in high level basketball for 10 years now and Lance has not been corrupted by the sport. He never reads any of the articles about himself. It's funny how people think they know you by the articles they read about you or the rumors they hear. I never thought that visiting the Under Armour store or Bornready.tv would be considered corruption.

For a writer to make comparisons is cool but when people start to believe the comparisons it's not fair. What has happened to Marbury & Telfair is not a reflection of Lance but more of a reflection of what’s wrong with America’s young society as a whole. Like any parent we use the mistakes made by other people to teach our own children. I’ve known Marbury & Telfair for many years and they are good young people.

I didn’t realize how bad the media had it for athletes coming from NY. Yes there have been several over-rated athletes coming out of NY but that is something we can say about all states. For 10 years Lance has competed at the highest amateur level possible and has held his own, that’s not over-rated, that's fact. From day 1 my wife and I wanted Lance to go to college. That’s a goal my wife and I set for all of our children.

WHY CINCY???? Coach Cronin told Lance:

1. He would be safe,
2. He would have academic support,
3. He would be around positive kids that don't get into much trouble,
4. He would have top of the line facilities to help him achieve his goals,
5. He would have top of the line coaching that will remind him of his goals and help him reach them,
6. He would always be challenged by a tough Big East Conference,
7. He would have the opportunity to be a team leader,
8. He would be a part of a family that is bigger than just basketball,
9. He told Lance he would be part of a team and that his role would be defined,
10. He told Lance that he would not exploit him,
11. He told Lance he would be in an environment where he could mature at his own pace,
12. He would be in a place where he would be accountable for his actions,
13. He would be in a place that loves basketball,
14. He would be in a place that would love to have him there,
15. He encouraged Lance's family involvement.

Most of the schools said these things but we believed Coach Cronin.

We are very happy with the choice. Thanks UC for accepting my son. I know success is measured by wins and losses but that Lance is getting @ Cincy is success to me. I have no regrets about any of the choices I made with my son. It has been so many good times, we've met so many people and learned so many things all through the game of basketball. We have been truly blessed.

In ending I ask that we all change how we document this sport because the players come and go but the game remains the same. The direction we are headed is destruction of our beautiful game.

I did some proof-reading and formatting (hope he doesn't mind), but the words are all his.

[TheLivingLegend]

Interesting read... As for it being his father, I would assume so. His twitter is ssStretch. I wonder what this means about Lance's future at UC.

[swg]

I would take Lance's dad over Sentreal Henderson's any day of the week.