Vaccaro: Lance is “Going to Make a Lot of Money”

Good read in today’s Daily News on Lincoln’s Lance Stephenson, including his comments about getting cut from the USA U18 National Team earlier this summer.

“When I got cut, I was just told I wasn’t what they were looking for, I wasn’t a good fit,” Stephenson says. “But to find out that they thought I’m a selfish player . . . I don’t think I’m a selfish player. I don’t think I have to score to win the game. I think I worked hard. I tried my best to make the team. I think I wasn’t (head coach Bob McKillop’s) fit. I take it as a learning experience and try to get better.”

Former ABCD Camp founder Sonny Vaccaro thought the selection of Stephenson wasn’t right in the first place.

“That was doomed from the start,” says Vaccaro, who still keeps a keen eye on the nation’s top recruits. “New York kids are more free-lance on and off the court. Lance has been demonized as not a team player, a moody guy. He has irked people for non-team play. But if Lance Stephenson does the right things on and off the court, he’s going to be very successful and make a lot of money. He has to prove to me that his mentality is 18-and-under more than IS-8.”

(Photo courtesy Daily News)