AP: Kings allow Artest to return

[LPKingsFan]

Kings allow Artest to return to team
By GREG BEACHAM, AP Sports Writer
March 10, 2007

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- The Sacramento Kings will allow Ron Artest to return to the team, five days after his arrest on suspicion of domestic violence.

The Kings called a news conference for Saturday afternoon to discuss the return of the controversial forward after missing two games.


Artest was excused from all team activities Tuesday, one day after being arrested at his home in a Sacramento suburb. A woman called 911 and said she had been assaulted, and a police report said Artest had slapped the woman's face and grabbed her repeatedly, causing visible injuries on her hand and leg.

Artest was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence and using force or violence to prevent the woman from reporting a crime. He was released from custody after posting a $50,000 bond and is awaiting a March 22 arraignment.

Sacramento beat the Indiana Pacers and lost to the San Antonio Spurs in two home games since Artest was banished. The Kings began the day just one game behind the Los Angeles Clippers for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.


Updated on Saturday, Mar 10, 2007 3:01 pm EST

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ap-kings-artest&prov=ap&type=lgns

 

[vfettke]

good, he should be playing

 

[BRad1055]

cbs13.com has the live video feed of the press conference.

 

[kingzzzfan4ever]

Great, I'm glad Artest is coming back to the team and playing in Sunday's game against the Nuggets.

 

[Twix]

I'll be at the Nuggets game!! GO ARTEST! GO KINGS!!!!!!

 

[Miles and Miles]

IF Artest has his head on straight then great let's go. Is it too early to call this one a must win? Clips are playing Detroit tomorrow, if we pull out a win we could be in the 8th spot tomorrow!!! Hopefully Artest is ready to be PART of the offense rather then try to BE the offense. His last couple of games he played he was doing just that, hopefully he remembers.

Go Kings!!!

 

[rhythmless]

a lot of players have cited playing basketball as a release from their worries. after losses of family members, etc, basketball is a kind of catharsis; being one with a certain flow. hope this clears artest a little bit, puts some things in perspective, and that he comes back to the nba better and mostly better for his family.

 

[kingsfanofthemonth]

This topic is worthy of a post.

I used to believe the Kings were a classy orginization. An orginization led by one the best GM's in all of sports and owned by two brilliant business men who above all else valued honor and integrity. My team has let me down, they are not who I thought they were.

There is absolutely no excuse on this planet to hit a woman or to intimidate her by force. I don't care how good Ron is, I don't care how many steals he gets or if he can hold Manu Ginobli to 2 points. Ron Artest, you do not deserve to wear a Kings jersey. I hope you hear this Geoff and Gavin and Joe, I hope you hear this all around you. We should not compromise our morals for W's and that is what is happening. This is real life, not a game. I can not support a franchise, I can not be a fan, I will no longer be a part of Ron being allowed to do whatever he wants. I truely believe this is lowest day in the history of our franchise.

 

[91sickness]

Everyone was quick to judge, and including myself, that ron hasnt changed he is still just a trouble maker blah blah blah. If you watch the video the first thing he says is i would like to apologize to my wife and family. He then gets choked up and cant even talk for a few minutes, he then says he would like to apologize to the kings and his teammates. Ron recognizes that he made a mistake and was very dissapointed in himself. After watching it, its seems like he has changed and realizes he is in a good situation here is Sac. I hope he stays and he doesnt get traded in the summer. He will play 2morrow and we will win on national tv to move into the 8th seed. (knock on wood) GO RON, GO KINGS!

 

[JB_kings]

This topic is worthy of a post.

I used to believe the Kings were a classy orginization. An orginization led by one the best GM's in all of sports and owned by two brilliant business men who above all else valued honor and integrity. My team has let me down, they are not who I thought they were.

There is absolutely no excuse on this planet to hit a woman or to intimidate her by force. I don't care how good Ron is, I don't care how many steals he gets or if he can hold Manu Ginobli to 2 points. Ron Artest, you do not deserve to wear a Kings jersey. I hope you hear this Geoff and Gavin and Joe, I hope you hear this all around you. We should not compromise our morals for W's and that is what is happening. This is real life, not a game. I can not support a franchise, I can not be a fan, I will no longer be a part of Ron being allowed to do whatever he wants. I truely believe this is lowest day in the history of our franchise.

Not even close to the worst day in franchise history. As far as I'm concerned, Ron Artest is allowed the same treatment as other players and coaches. They deserve their day in court and if they are guilty, then the punishment is handed out. If/when this case goes to court and Artest is found guilty, then he'll pay for his crime - not before.

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

Everyone was quick to judge, and including myself, that ron hasnt changed he is still just a trouble maker blah blah blah. If you watch the video the first thing he says is i would like to apologize to my wife and family. He then gets choked up and cant even talk for a few minutes, he then says he would like to apologize to the kings and his teammates. Ron recognizes that he made a mistake and was very dissapointed in himself. After watching it, its seems like he has changed and realizes he is in a good situation here is Sac. I hope he stays and he doesnt get traded in the summer. He will play 2morrow and we will win on national tv to move into the 8th seed. (knock on wood) GO RON, GO KINGS!

We can only hope the best for Ron and his family...from this point on. Hell, if Kobe can go on TV and get choked up and recover from a rape accusation, admit cheating on his wife, and in only a year or so...then Ron can continue doing what he's done for us since he's been here with our team and get his ishh straight with his family situation.

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

Not even close to the worst day in franchise history. As far as I'm concerned.

Amen to that! I could run down a laundry list of other 'worse days' in Sacramento Kings franchise history. Including some of our other player's wrong doings off the court.

 

[John Galt]

This topic is worthy of a post.

I used to believe the Kings were a classy orginization. An orginization led by one the best GM's in all of sports and owned by two brilliant business men who above all else valued honor and integrity. My team has let me down, they are not who I thought they were.

There is absolutely no excuse on this planet to hit a woman or to intimidate her by force. I don't care how good Ron is, I don't care how many steals he gets or if he can hold Manu Ginobli to 2 points. Ron Artest, you do not deserve to wear a Kings jersey. I hope you hear this Geoff and Gavin and Joe, I hope you hear this all around you. We should not compromise our morals for W's and that is what is happening. This is real life, not a game. I can not support a franchise, I can not be a fan, I will no longer be a part of Ron being allowed to do whatever he wants. I truely believe this is lowest day in the history of our franchise.

Oh come on are you serious? JDub and the pot beefs/racist rants, Webber and the perjury/pot beefs, Team Dime beating up patrons at the Blue Cue or wherever it was, Muss and the DUI... where did you get the idea that the Kings were ever a bunch of boy scouts?

Artest hasn't been convicted of anything here yet - why should he not go out and earn his living like the rest of us would while we were waiting for the Justice System to do its thing?

And why anyone is disillusioned that the Maloof/Corleone family puts the bucks ahead of everything is completely beyond me. These guys made and keep their fortune in the liquor and casino businesses. Lives are ruined to line these guys' pockets don't kid yourself about that.

Give me a break with the class stuff. That notion went out in the same trash heap with Chris Webber, Doug Christie, Vlade Divac, Peja Stojakovic and Rick Adelman. I might have missed a few people who were callously discarded by this "classy organization"... sorry about that. Oh yeah, how about the way they held their pal Whisenant up to public ridicule then dropped him like a hot rock. I wonder who they have not betrayed on their way to their zillions.

I just think they are in for a rude awakening when they send out this year's renewals. Big time.

But anyway - we're in the good old USA and Ron Artest is "innocent until proven guilty" - we DO NOT KNOW WHAT HAPPENED BETWEEN RON AND HIS WIFE!

 

[NikateeN]

WE DO NOT KNOW WHAT HAPPENED BETWEEN RON AND HIS WIFE!

Amen to that, things are not always what they seem.

 

[SLAB]

Ron Ron handled that as good as he possibly could have.

He made a mistake, he admitted his mistake in a truthful manner, and now he can come back and help us win some games.

If his apology was read robotically off a pre-written script, I'd be a bit skeptical, but that was from the heart.

Welcome back, Ron!

 

[Elise10]

As far as the interview one line in particular stood out from Ron:

"Guys like Kevin Martin playing well, yet you hear Ron Artest, for something other than basketball."

Needs to change, really does.

Whatever plans that Geoff has in store for Ron, counseling better be one of them.

He for the most part acknowledged that he's got a problem. Wants to prove that he can walk the straight and slightly crooked(can't say narrow, Ron's personality just doesn't conform that neatly) path. The fans have the right to express their opinions of him but he still likes the fans here.

We'll just see what happens next

 

[gunks]

Well, one things for sure....Melo cant be happy about Artest coming back

 

[Purple Reign]

This topic is worthy of a post.

I used to believe the Kings were a classy orginization. An orginization led by one the best GM's in all of sports and owned by two brilliant business men who above all else valued honor and integrity. My team has let me down, they are not who I thought they were.

There is absolutely no excuse on this planet to hit a woman or to intimidate her by force. I don't care how good Ron is, I don't care how many steals he gets or if he can hold Manu Ginobli to 2 points. Ron Artest, you do not deserve to wear a Kings jersey. I hope you hear this Geoff and Gavin and Joe, I hope you hear this all around you. We should not compromise our morals for W's and that is what is happening. This is real life, not a game. I can not support a franchise, I can not be a fan, I will no longer be a part of Ron being allowed to do whatever he wants. I truely believe this is lowest day in the history of our franchise.

You need to take that nonsense to your local church or to your family counselor. Artest has handled this situation as best as one could. Life is life and basketball is basketball. Dude is paid to play, and there is no reason for him not to play until the courts say otherwise.

This ain't no guilty until proven innocent society. Even Petrie said that. And if this is good enough for Petrie and the organization, it is good enough for me".

Give AI and Melo fits tomorrow Ron, AND AT THE SAME TIME....work out your family situation. Welcome Back!!!!!!

 

[ezekielbear]

This topic is worthy of a post.

I used to believe the Kings were a classy orginization. An orginization led by one the best GM's in all of sports and owned by two brilliant business men who above all else valued honor and integrity. My team has let me down, they are not who I thought they were.

There is absolutely no excuse on this planet to hit a woman or to intimidate her by force. I don't care how good Ron is, I don't care how many steals he gets or if he can hold Manu Ginobli to 2 points. Ron Artest, you do not deserve to wear a Kings jersey. I hope you hear this Geoff and Gavin and Joe, I hope you hear this all around you. We should not compromise our morals for W's and that is what is happening. This is real life, not a game. I can not support a franchise, I can not be a fan, I will no longer be a part of Ron being allowed to do whatever he wants. I truely believe this is lowest day in the history of our franchise.

Were you a fan when Jason Williams went bananas on the crowd at the Warrior game?

Did you root for Chris Webber, Vernon Maxwell, or a # of other Kings who had plenty of blemishes on their record...

Did you root for Officer Olden Polynice...?

There always have been, and always will be..."problems"...it wont stop with Ron, and it didn't start with him.

 

[uolj]

I'm satisfied with how the Kings have handled this so far. It is a serious situation, and they have handled it in a serious manner. I'm also satisfied with Artest's apology. That's about all you can do at this point. Of course, that doesn't mean this ends here for either the Kings or Artest. Both have a lot of work ahead. The Kings have to follow Artest's "rehab" to see if he can continue to act with contrition, and of course he has to do that and change what he and his wife apparently consider to be acceptable actions.

As a Kings fan, I actually don't care whether Artest plays or not. What I do care about is that the team and he treat this situation with the gravity it deserves. So far I have no complaints.

 

[10bibby10]

im soo happy ron is back to guard melo....if he wasnt here we would have nooooo chance of defending himm

 

[Big Cuz 15]

There is absolutely no excuse on this planet to hit a woman or to intimidate her by force. I don't care how good Ron is, I don't care how many steals he gets or if he can hold Manu Ginobli to 2 points. Ron Artest, you do not deserve to wear a Kings jersey. I hope you hear this Geoff and Gavin and Joe, I hope you hear this all around you. We should not compromise our morals for W's and that is what is happening. This is real life, not a game. I can not support a franchise, I can not be a fan, I will no longer be a part of Ron being allowed to do whatever he wants. I truely believe this is lowest day in the history of our franchise.

is there any real evidence of this? do we even know what really happened w/ artest. i'm not saying i back any of those types of action but all it takes is a phone call to the police during a heated argument. that person can say oh he pushed me around blah blah blah and its considered domestic violence. at least wait for the final results before hanging the guy.

 

[DocHolliday]

This topic is worthy of a post.

I used to believe the Kings were a classy orginization. An orginization led by one the best GM's in all of sports and owned by two brilliant business men who above all else valued honor and integrity. My team has let me down, they are not who I thought they were.

There is absolutely no excuse on this planet to hit a woman or to intimidate her by force. I don't care how good Ron is, I don't care how many steals he gets or if he can hold Manu Ginobli to 2 points. Ron Artest, you do not deserve to wear a Kings jersey. I hope you hear this Geoff and Gavin and Joe, I hope you hear this all around you. We should not compromise our morals for W's and that is what is happening. This is real life, not a game. I can not support a franchise, I can not be a fan, I will no longer be a part of Ron being allowed to do whatever he wants. I truely believe this is lowest day in the history of our franchise.

"PC" crap. This is america and as Geoff Petrie pointed on more than one occassion Ron Artest is INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY. If do not comprehend the meaning of that statement move to a socialist or communist country. You may appreciate their values more.

The Kings organization AND the NBA are taking no action because the man HAS NOT BEEN CONVICTED. HE HAS BEEN ONLY CHARGED. Those are key points right there.

His wife sounds just as guilty in this scenario as he does, but none of us including you and myself do not know. Only Ron and his wife know what really happened, so get off your high horse.

If a woman swings a knife with the intent to injure or kill her husband and knocks her out cold, he's guilty of domestic violence EVEN if it was in self defense, ESPECIALLY in California. As a man you better be almost dead before you hit a woman to justify it legall which is complete and udder crap. Everyone should have the right to defend themself from the start.

Pushing someone to me sounds like a defensive move, and a way of controlling a situation without hitting. Let's not forget she smashed his windshield and tried to take another car that BOTH THEIR NAMES are on, which probably means he bought the car, and he was trying to leave. Her first and foremost concern was her car, nothing else.

But hey, we'll see when it comes out in court.

 

[SacKings384]

Wow Ron really came out and manned up... He even shed some tears on the podium... I hope this is the last we hear of this.

 

[uolj]

I think the "innocent until proven guilty" line gets thrown around a little too much in these discussions. If he was perfectly innocent, there would be no need for the apology he gave today. In addition, while we obviously don't know all the details, it is not difficult to make educated guesses based on what we do know, and give opinions on that matter under the assumption that those opinions are based on "what we think we know". In this case, I think we know that he likely had a physical confrontation of some kind with his wife, and I think it is perfectly fair for people to be upset about that on its face.

That said, the situation also seems much more complicated than "he's just a punk who beats up women." If the Kings agree with that, then I don't see why it is wrong for them to let him continue to work. If it turns out that he is found guilty or that his actions were even worse than it currently appears, I have no doubt that they will act accordingly at that time. So now we wait and see.

I hope this is the last we hear of this.

I personally hope we continue to hear about how Artest atones for his mistake and how the Kings decide to punish him for it and help him through it.

 

[BonziFan]

This topic is worthy of a post.

I used to believe the Kings were a classy orginization. An orginization led by one the best GM's in all of sports and owned by two brilliant business men who above all else valued honor and integrity. My team has let me down, they are not who I thought they were.

There is absolutely no excuse on this planet to hit a woman or to intimidate her by force. I don't care how good Ron is, I don't care how many steals he gets or if he can hold Manu Ginobli to 2 points. Ron Artest, you do not deserve to wear a Kings jersey. I hope you hear this Geoff and Gavin and Joe, I hope you hear this all around you. We should not compromise our morals for W's and that is what is happening. This is real life, not a game. I can not support a franchise, I can not be a fan, I will no longer be a part of Ron being allowed to do whatever he wants. I truely believe this is lowest day in the history of our franchise.

This is an absolute joke. How can you assume anything? No one knows what really happened and if you listen to the 911 tape it sure sounds like a woman trying to get someone in trouble, not someone worried for her life. I have worn my Ron Artest jersey to the last two games in support of Ron because people like you won't let go of the past. Did you know Jason Kidd got arrested for the same thing? Do you think he went through what Artest is? I don't know what happened but until I do I will not judge anyone just because of his past.

 

[Troy]

I know how serious of a situation this is, but we need Ron back and I think it's great GP let Ron back. He will have his day in court soon and judgement will be passed. Let's get on with getting into the playoffs....GO KINGS!!!

 

[DocHolliday]

I think the "innocent until proven guilty" line gets thrown around a little too much in these discussions. If he was perfectly innocent, there would be no need for the apology he gave today. In addition, while we obviously don't know all the details, it is not difficult to make educated guesses based on what we do know, and give opinions on that matter under the assumption that those opinions are based on "what we think we know". In this case, I think we know that he likely had a physical confrontation of some kind with his wife, and I think it is perfectly fair for people to be upset about that on its face.

That said, the situation also seems much more complicated than "he's just a punk who beats up women." If the Kings agree with that, then I don't see why it is wrong for them to let him continue to work. If it turns out that he is found guilty or that his actions were even worse than it currently appears, I have no doubt that they will act accordingly at that time. So now we wait and see.

I personally hope we continue to hear about how Artest atones for his mistake and how the Kings decide to punish him for it and help him through it.

3

If a person is caught with a bloody knife in their hand on top of a person that has been stabbed and continues to stab then repeatedly we know they are guilty.

In this situation we dont' know much and you can assume and make educated guesses all you want, and it still does not make it anymore valid. The "Innocent Until Proven Guilty" is the foundation of our legal system and the protection of our freedoms. Like it or not it's the way it is. Without out basic rules like that we'd arrest and imprison people without probably cause and without it being warranted. Oh, wait, that sounds like a dictatorship.

 

[mr. moustache]

Dude. Swedes aren't guilty until proven innocent. America doesn't, and hasn't owned that concept.

"PC" crap. This is america and as Geoff Petrie pointed on more than one occassion Ron Artest is INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY. If do not comprehend the meaning of that statement move to a socialist or communist country. You may appreciate their values more.

The Kings organization AND the NBA are taking no action because the man HAS NOT BEEN CONVICTED. HE HAS BEEN ONLY CHARGED. Those are key points right there.

His wife sounds just as guilty in this scenario as he does, but none of us including you and myself do not know. Only Ron and his wife know what really happened, so get off your high horse.

If a woman swings a knife with the intent to injure or kill her husband and knocks her out cold, he's guilty of domestic violence EVEN if it was in self defense, ESPECIALLY in California. As a man you better be almost dead before you hit a woman to justify it legall which is complete and udder crap. Everyone should have the right to defend themself from the start.

Pushing someone to me sounds like a defensive move, and a way of controlling a situation without hitting. Let's not forget she smashed his windshield and tried to take another car that BOTH THEIR NAMES are on, which probably means he bought the car, and he was trying to leave. Her first and foremost concern was her car, nothing else.

But hey, we'll see when it comes out in court.

 

[Bricklayer]

People really have to get off the innocent until proven guilty stuff. That's a LEGAL concept. My province as a lawyer,not society's as a whole. An important component of the legal system to prevent the state from removing freedom, or even life, from citizens unless in extremis. But it is a LEGAL concept, applicable as absolute only in the LEGAL world where consequences are final and irrevocable. It is not how the real world works. Nobody was inviting OJ over for dinner after he was arrested...or I should note even now that he has been "proven" innocent. If your neighbor is arrested for child molestation, you would be an immensely irresponsible parent if you let him babysit your 6 yr old daughter the next day. In the real world, innocent until proven guilty is a nice concept, but its not how we operate. You make best judgments every day about everyone without a shred of hard evidence. You hedge your bets, cross the street to avoid the rough looking guy, avoid the bad neighborhood, whatever, without a shred of hard evidence that anyone in particular has done anything.