KingKong
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GREG BEACHAM
Associated Press
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Ron Artest only had one prediction for Game 3 of the Sacramento Kings' playoff series against San Antonio: He'll be there.
And the Kings believe their defensive star's return after a one-game suspension will give them another good chance to beat the Spurs on Friday night after two tough losses back in Texas - one in 34-point blowout fashion, and the other on the heartbreak of Brent Barry's bouncing, game-tying 3-pointer in San Antonio's overtime victory.
After his usual lengthy post-practice shooting workout Thursday, Artest made his first public comments since Game 1, when two scrapes with Manu Ginobili left him with a cut lip from Ginobili's elbow and a one-game suspension from his own blow to Ginobili's head.
Artest didn't predict a series victory, as he did earlier, or even a win in Game 3. But the notorious forward expressed pride in his teammates, who nearly upset the top-seeded Spurs in Game 2 before Barry's shot broke his heart back in his hotel in San Antonio.
"It's happened to me before. It wasn't, like, the first time," Artest said of watching a game with full room service, thanks to previous suspensions.
"I'm a little bit (more) able to deal with it and bounce back and be that much better. ... I'm not going to think about putting the team on my shoulders. We're just going to think about winning games the same way we've been winning games."
Artest had nothing to say about his suspension, which the Kings felt was partly due to his prior history of aggressive play and mercurial behavior. He believes the only proper response is a victory in Game 3.
"I'm over that suspension. I'm over it," he said. "On this team, we don't accept moral victories. I still felt that we should have won without me."
The Kings almost did - despite terrible games from veterans Mike Bibby and Brad Miller, who joined Artest in those remedial post-practice shooting drills. Bibby and Miller could both use it after going a combined 5-for-24 in Sacramento's second loss.
"Even though Ron is coming back, we've all got to remember the way we played that gave us a chance to win Game 2," said Bonzi Wells, who had 28 points and 12 rebounds before fouling out Tuesday. "We've got to stay aggressive and play with the energy we had. We have to hold serve."
Meanwhile, the Spurs retreated into a Game 2 complacency that got their ears blistered by coach Gregg Popovich. The Spurs went back to practice Thursday in San Antonio with specific defensive objectives before their flight to California.
"Our defense was very poor," Popovich said. "Our transition defense was not very good. Our overall team defense was not very good. That's what we worked on the most the past couple of days."
Though San Antonio is comfortable anywhere after amassing the NBA's best road record and winning countless postseason games away from home, the Spurs have never visited deafening Arco Arena during the playoffs.
"Now we've got the pressure on them, down two games," Tim Duncan said. "Now we've got to go into Arco and really get this first one. That puts the ultimate pressure - elimination - on people."
And the Spurs aren't sure whether they'll see the Artest-led club that beat them by 10 points late in the regular season, or the Artest-led club that flopped in a humiliating 34-point loss in Game 1.
"Their offense doesn't change much, (although) they run it a little bit differently with him in it," said Duncan, who has been nearly as ineffective as Miller in the first two games. "I don't know if it's better or worse."
At least Duncan can blame foul trouble and a recurring foot injury for managing just 25 total points in the first two games. On the other sideline, Miller has appeared lost and lazy, and the two-time All-Star was benched late in Game 2.
Miller and Bibby both often shake slumps at home, and the Kings realize they're running out of time to prove they're the tough first-round matchup everyone expected for the Spurs - even if their effort in Game 2 fell one fortuitous San Antonio bounce shy of success.
"I don't want to be down 3-0 to the world champions," coach Rick Adelman said. "That would make it tough. It's definitely a game we have to win. ... They're the best road team in the league. When you're playing a team like this in the playoffs, they're not going to be intimidated by our crowd, but our crowd can certainly get us going."
http://www.bradenton.com/mld/bradenton/sports/basketball/14445737.htm
Associated Press
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Ron Artest only had one prediction for Game 3 of the Sacramento Kings' playoff series against San Antonio: He'll be there.
And the Kings believe their defensive star's return after a one-game suspension will give them another good chance to beat the Spurs on Friday night after two tough losses back in Texas - one in 34-point blowout fashion, and the other on the heartbreak of Brent Barry's bouncing, game-tying 3-pointer in San Antonio's overtime victory.
After his usual lengthy post-practice shooting workout Thursday, Artest made his first public comments since Game 1, when two scrapes with Manu Ginobili left him with a cut lip from Ginobili's elbow and a one-game suspension from his own blow to Ginobili's head.
Artest didn't predict a series victory, as he did earlier, or even a win in Game 3. But the notorious forward expressed pride in his teammates, who nearly upset the top-seeded Spurs in Game 2 before Barry's shot broke his heart back in his hotel in San Antonio.
"It's happened to me before. It wasn't, like, the first time," Artest said of watching a game with full room service, thanks to previous suspensions.
"I'm a little bit (more) able to deal with it and bounce back and be that much better. ... I'm not going to think about putting the team on my shoulders. We're just going to think about winning games the same way we've been winning games."
Artest had nothing to say about his suspension, which the Kings felt was partly due to his prior history of aggressive play and mercurial behavior. He believes the only proper response is a victory in Game 3.
"I'm over that suspension. I'm over it," he said. "On this team, we don't accept moral victories. I still felt that we should have won without me."
The Kings almost did - despite terrible games from veterans Mike Bibby and Brad Miller, who joined Artest in those remedial post-practice shooting drills. Bibby and Miller could both use it after going a combined 5-for-24 in Sacramento's second loss.
"Even though Ron is coming back, we've all got to remember the way we played that gave us a chance to win Game 2," said Bonzi Wells, who had 28 points and 12 rebounds before fouling out Tuesday. "We've got to stay aggressive and play with the energy we had. We have to hold serve."
Meanwhile, the Spurs retreated into a Game 2 complacency that got their ears blistered by coach Gregg Popovich. The Spurs went back to practice Thursday in San Antonio with specific defensive objectives before their flight to California.
"Our defense was very poor," Popovich said. "Our transition defense was not very good. Our overall team defense was not very good. That's what we worked on the most the past couple of days."
Though San Antonio is comfortable anywhere after amassing the NBA's best road record and winning countless postseason games away from home, the Spurs have never visited deafening Arco Arena during the playoffs.
"Now we've got the pressure on them, down two games," Tim Duncan said. "Now we've got to go into Arco and really get this first one. That puts the ultimate pressure - elimination - on people."
And the Spurs aren't sure whether they'll see the Artest-led club that beat them by 10 points late in the regular season, or the Artest-led club that flopped in a humiliating 34-point loss in Game 1.
"Their offense doesn't change much, (although) they run it a little bit differently with him in it," said Duncan, who has been nearly as ineffective as Miller in the first two games. "I don't know if it's better or worse."
At least Duncan can blame foul trouble and a recurring foot injury for managing just 25 total points in the first two games. On the other sideline, Miller has appeared lost and lazy, and the two-time All-Star was benched late in Game 2.
Miller and Bibby both often shake slumps at home, and the Kings realize they're running out of time to prove they're the tough first-round matchup everyone expected for the Spurs - even if their effort in Game 2 fell one fortuitous San Antonio bounce shy of success.
"I don't want to be down 3-0 to the world champions," coach Rick Adelman said. "That would make it tough. It's definitely a game we have to win. ... They're the best road team in the league. When you're playing a team like this in the playoffs, they're not going to be intimidated by our crowd, but our crowd can certainly get us going."
http://www.bradenton.com/mld/bradenton/sports/basketball/14445737.htm
- are offensively capable enough for him not to go Kobe on the Spurs -the way Kobe has played in this yr playoff, perhaps my example's a bit out dated 
