The Indiana Pacers announced Monday they have picked up the option on 6-6 forward Stephen Graham’s contract. Per club policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed.

Graham, signed as a free agent in July of 2007, played in 22 games for the Pacers last season, averaging 4.0 points per game while shooting .586 from the floor and scoring a career-high 16 points at Toronto, Feb. 29.

“Stephen is an exceptional individual on and off the court,” said Pacers President of Basketball Larry Bird. “He has a great work ethic and over the course of last season, we saw major improvement from last summer. If he continues to improve like that, he’ll play a major role for this team. He is exactly the type of player we want on our team.”

“I’d like to thank the Pacers organization for seeing my potential and giving me the opportunity to come back next year to show my intensity and professionalism,” said Graham, a three-year veteran. “I’m going to work extremely hard this summer. This is going to be a big year for me. I’m looking forward to getting better and expanding on what I can contribute to the Pacers.”
*Courtesy: Indiana Pacers