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Raptors, Pacers Get into Heated Exchange Following Lance Stephenson’s Late Score

By Chris Okrainetz

Apr 4, 2017; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Toronto Raptors forward PJ Tucker (2) and guard DeMar DeRozan (10) get into an altercation with Indiana Pacers guard Lance Stephenson (6) in the second half of the game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The Pacers beat the Raptors 108-90. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 4, 2017; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Toronto Raptors forward PJ Tucker (2) and guard DeMar DeRozan (10) get into an altercation with Indiana Pacers guard Lance Stephenson (6) in the second half of the game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The Pacers beat the Raptors 108-90. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Toronto Raptors and Indiana Pacers engaged in a heated verbal exchange following Lance Stephenson‘s uncontested layup with 3.3 seconds left in Tuesday’s game.

After leading the Indiana Pacers by as many as 19 points, the Toronto Raptors squandered away their lead and eventually found themselves trailing by 15 points late in the fourth quarter. However, if you thought blowing a double-digit lead was bad enough, well, Lance Stephenson made sure the Raptors would never forget it.

With the game clock winding down, Stephenson caught an inbounds pass near mid-court and instead of dribbling out the clock until time expired, like you see every team in the NBA do, the agitating wing player instead decided to score an uncontested layup with 3.3 seconds left in the game.

Unsurprisingly, the Raptors, more specifically P.J. Tucker and DeMar DeRozan, took exception to Stephenson’s layup and a heated exchange erupted as time expired.

Once the two sides were separated, DeRozan, Tucker and Stephenson all received technical fouls and the final seconds of the game were played out. The Raptors weren’t ready to just walk away from what Stephenson did, however, with Dwane Casey calling the play “bush league” after the game.

Tucker also didn’t hold back when asked about Stephenson’s antics and said he’s probably just happy to be back in the league.

Let’s just call a spade a spade here when it comes to Stephenson — are you really surprised by this? His history of questionable behaviour, or incidents, or however you want to frame it, speaks for itself.

Whether he’s blowing in LeBron James‘ ear, running into issues off the court, or making gestures that sparks so much outrage from your opposition that they try to fight you in the locker room on an off-day, Stephenson is a lightning rod for controversy and this is just the latest chapter in his tumultuous career.

With the Pacers a game and a half back of the sixth place Atlanta Hawks, there is a chance we could see the Raptors take on Indiana during the first round of the playoffs. After this incident with Stephenson, I’m sure Raptor fans would love a chance to play the Pacers in round one.

Next: Lowry Expected to Play Before Season Ends

What did you think of Lance Stephenson’s lay-up near the end of the game? Was it disrespectful? Was it “bush league?” Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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