Candace Buckner

candace.buckner@indystar.com

The Indiana Pacers have offered free agent Lance Stephenson a five-year, $44 million deal, a source confirmed to The Star. As first reported by ESPN, Stephenson and the Pacers have come to a stalemate and Stephenson will continue to speak with other interested teams.

Previously, Pacers' President of Basketball of Operations Larry Bird has said that the team has a price for Stephenson and will not exceed it. The Pacers are the only team that can offer Stephenson a five-year deal because it owns his Bird Rights.

However, the market spoke loud and clear during the first day of free agency when guard Jodie Meeks reportedly earned a three-year deal worth nearly $20 million from the Detroit Pistons. The 26-year-old Meeks will earn roughly $6.6 million per year after averaging 15.7 points on 46.3 percent shooting but just 2.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.4 steals.

Stephenson, 23, is a more versatile guard than Meeks, averaging 13.8 points on 49.1 percent shooting, with 7.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists. The Pacers' offer averages $8.8 million and comes after he wrapped up his rookie-scale contract and was paid only $981,349 last season.

According to ESPN, the Charlotte Hornets, Los Angeles Lakers and Chicago Bulls have also expressed interest in Stephenson.

On Tuesday, the Pacers landed 6-10 Croatian shooter Damjan Rudez to a three-year deal. A league source told The Star that Rudez's signing doesn't affect the future of Luis Scola.