INDIANAPOLIS – Before the Indiana Pacers' Lance Stephenson had time to study an endless scroll of congratulatory texts on Saturday night, there promised to be a most meaningful message awaiting him. Out of sight this season, Larry Bird has never been out of touch.





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As Pacers president three years ago, Bird drafted a dysfunctional 19 year old and surrounded him with the perfect balance of tough love, structure and tenderness. As everyone else derided Stephenson as a lost cause, Bird privately called him the most gifted player in the franchise.

"I owe Larry Bird so much," Stephenson told Yahoo! Sports late Saturday.



Bird left the franchise for his Florida home at the end of last season, but the kid has stayed strongly in Bird's mind and heart. Stephenson was standing in an emptying locker room at Bankers Life Field House, on the way to the Eastern Conference finals with the game of his life complete: 25 points, 10 rebounds and three assists.





The New York Knicks had gone down in Game 6 on Saturday night and Stephenson – out of the mayhem of schoolboy celebrity in Brooklyn's Coney Island – had delivered one devastating blow after another in the final minutes of a 106-99 victory.

"He believed in me," Stephenson told Y! Sports. "He gave me the confidence that I could play in the league. Larry is a legend, and when he tells you that you can do this, and do that, it just boosts your confidence, makes you feel like no one can stop you."

Finally, it happened. No one could stop Lance Stephenson on Saturday night. When the uncertainty of a Game 7 at Madison Square Garden hung like an anvil over these Pacers, when the Knicks had come marauding back to take a fourth-quarter lead, Stephenson validated his benefactor's vision with the biggest plays in the biggest minutes of the season.

[Also: Pacers pulls together, oust Knicks from playoffs in Game 6]

Stephenson changes the dynamic of meeting the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals. He changes everything for the Pacers. He's resilient, resourceful and a strong, strapping 6-foot-5 to take on LeBron James and Dwyane Wade.

"His talent is incredible," David West said. "We see it every day. When Lance plays well, we win. He got us over the hump in this series."

Lance Stephenson celebrates a Pacers bucket during their win over the Knicks. (AP) More

One year ago, Stephenson was considered a clown, a punchline, a downright embarrassment within a mature locker room. In a conference semifinal game against Miami, the television cameras caught Stephenson hurling a choke sign at James. For the rest of the series, Heat players took turns chasing down Stephenson and hitting him in his brief cameos on the floor.

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