Chad Ford: How the trade went down

[VF21]

Note: I found this at PacersDigest...

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/insid...had&id=2307632

The inside story of the Artest-Stojakovic trade
Insider
Ford
By Chad Ford
ESPN Insider
Archive

The Ron Artest saga (at least this episode) is finally over. After a six-week wait, Artest is a Sacramento King and Peja Stojakovic is an Indiana Pacer.

How did it happen? What went on behind the scenes?

Pacers president Donnie Walsh spoke with ESPN.com on the phone on Thursday and laid out what happened and why the Pacers did what they did.

When did the Pacers decide to trade him? Why did it take so long? Did they almost trade for Corey Maggette? What other deals came close?

And what happened in those last crazy 48 hours when the deal almost happened, died and then was resurrected on Wednesday?

Walsh provides the answers.

The trade demand
The Pacers came into this season with high expectations. The team, despite a rash of suspensions and injuries last season, made it to the second round of the playoffs. Confidence was high.

All the major starters from the team, with the exception of veteran Reggie Miller, were returning. The Pacers got a draft-day steal with Danny Granger and landed one of the hottest free agents on the market, Euro star Sarunas Jasikevicius.

Oh . . . and Ron Artest, one of the best two-way players in the league, was coming back from a year-long suspension.

Artest looked great in the summer league. The Pacers felt confident that his off-court problems were finally behind him. He looked focused in the preseason and the Pacers looked poised to provide a serious challenge to the Detroit Pistons for the Eastern Conference title.

Then, out of the blue, in a one-on-one interview with the Indianapolis Star on Dec. 10, Artest suggested the Pacers trade him. The impetus for his request? He had heard a rumor that the Pacers had rekindled year-old talks with the Kings about a Stojakovic-Artest swap.

"If the trade rumors, if there is any truth -- maybe it won't be a bad thing," Artest said. "They probably could win more games without me. . . . If I go to the West Coast, I would come back to New York after my contract is up. . . . I would go to Cleveland. I wouldn't mind coming off the bench behind LeBron James. There's a lot of players I wouldn't mind coming off the bench behind."

Artest also criticized coach Rick Carlisle: "I like Coach as a person, but I don't like playing for Coach. I like my team, though. . . . Don't get it twisted. He's a very good coach. He knows what he's doing. I personally don't like playing for him."

The Pacers were stunned. According to Walsh, Artest had never approached him with any of the concerns.

In fact, the rumors weren't true, Walsh says: The Pacers had not spoken with the Kings about Stojakovic in over a year.

Walsh set up a meeting with Artest on Dec. 11 and tried to calm his fears.

"I told Ronnie that he should have come to me if he had an issue," Walsh told ESPN.com. "That he went about it the wrong way. I told him there wasn't any truth to the rumor and I wanted him to come to practice on Sunday [Dec. 12] and we'd try to work through it."

Walsh described Artest as apologetic, and Walsh thought that the issue could be resolved. However, on the evening of the 12th, Walsh saw Artest on TV, reading statements that seemed to contradict what was said in the meeting. Artest appeared to still be standing by his trade request.

Walsh said it was at that moment that he knew Artest couldn't play for the Pacers again.

"I just couldn't keep him," Walsh said. "We had gone out of our way to help Ronnie. Probably too much so. We were so in love with his talent and I thought, and still think, that he's a really good kid. After all the things we did to help him, I finally realized, we can't help him."

Walsh, after consulting with Larry Bird and his owners, acted quickly.

"I called Ronnie back up and told him that we were going to trade him," Walsh said. "I also told him we were going to keep him away from the team until we found a trade partner. He seemed OK with it."

Early offers
The Pacers have taken some heat for their decision to put Artest on the inactive list. Many in the media have claimed that it hurt his trade value.

Walsh didn't see it that way. Rather, he was pleased to be able to take advantage of the inactive list, a new option provided in the collective bargaining agreement, which did away with the injured list.

"It was a blessing," Walsh said. "Before the rule change, you had two choices. You could either suspend a player or put him on the injured list. If Ronnie was healthy, he could refuse to be put on the list. If we suspended him, it would've gone to arbitration and would've been a mess. By putting him on the inactive list, it bought us time to get the right deal."

The Pacers needed the time. Walsh said that they received inquiries from "about half" of the teams in the league. But the offers were neither good nor concrete.

Walsh ended up making some calls of his own, trying to persuade teams that Artest would help them -- that they were overestimating his problems and underestimating his talent.

"A lot of GMs told me they thought or heard he was crazy," Walsh said. "I told all of them he's not. He's very emotional, but he's not crazy. That's not fair to Ronnie."

One of those early calls was to Kings GM Geoff Petrie. According to Walsh, Petrie said he wasn't interested.

As time passed, Walsh said he was beginning to get nervous.

"We were willing to patient," Walsh said. "But we had a drop-dead date of the trade deadline. I was starting to get worried about it."

The deal that almost happened
While reports were flying around the Internet about imminent deals with the Denver Nuggets, Atlanta Hawks and Minnesota Timberwolves, Walsh said that only one other deal ever came close to happening.

The Pacers had strong interest in Los Angeles Clippers swingman Corey Maggette, and after a foot injury sidelined him, the Clippers decided they would be willing to swap him for Artest.

"We would've done the deal," Walsh said. "However, when we got the MRI on his foot, we sent it to one of the leading authorities on this particular type of injury. His opinion was that Maggette would be out months, and likely the season. When we couldn't get a clear answer on how long the rehab would take, we decided that it wasn't worth the risk. Having just been through [a similar situation] with Jonathan Bender, there were just too many question marks."

While the Pacers (and the Clippers) were disappointed that the deal didn't go down, the fact that it leaked ended up helping Indiana.

"The offers started getting better," Walsh said. "People started offering players of that caliber for Artest. I started to get confident that we were going to get a deal that worked for us."

After the Maggette deal fell apart, the Pacers focused much of their attention on two other Pacific division teams.

The Warriors had shown interest in Artest from the beginning. While Walsh refused to speak about the specific players talked about in his conversation with the Warriors, rumors had been floating since the beginning that the Pacers were after rookie forward Ike Diogu and Frenchman Mickael Pietrus.

"I had some good talks with Mully [Warriors GM Chris Mullin]," Walsh said. "I don't think he ever was sure whether he could take the risk with Artest. I think Ronnie would've been a great fit there and I think Mully could've been a great mentor to Ronnie. They both played at the same school [St. John's] and I know that Ronnie respects guys who can get on the floor and work with him. But they never made us the offer we were looking for, so it didn't happen."

The Lakers were also in hot pursuit of Artest. Walsh declined to discuss the specifics of those talks either, making it unclear whether it was the Lakers who refused to part with Lamar Odom or whether it was the Pacers who were uncomfortable taking on his huge contract.

Shortly after the leak, another team entered the fray. Walsh received a call from Petrie roughly two weeks ago. According to Walsh, Petrie said that his owners, the Maloof brothers, were big fans of Artest and might be willing to do a deal.

Cont...

 

[VF21]

The Peja deal
Walsh said Stojakovic had a lot of fans in the Pacers organization. He was the type of player they were looking for.

"We actually worked out Peja the year he entered the draft," Walsh said. "He really had an amazing workout for us and we almost drafted him. Had he been able to come over right away [it took another two years for Peja to make it to the NBA], we probably would've drafted him. I remember Mel Daniels standing next to me in the workout and saying that Peja was the best-shooting forward he'd seen since Larry Bird. I think he was right."

Walsh said the team was also looking for a player who had a great work ethic, could score and would be a good citizen on and off the court.

"The team has really struggled with all the distractions they've been put through," Walsh said. "We really needed a player like him. I think he brings a lot more than a jump shot to the table."

While Walsh declined to elaborate, sources told ESPN.com 18 months ago that the Pacers were willing to swap Artest for Stojakovic and that the Kings had cold feet then, too.

After Petrie's call earlier this month, the trade talks between the Kings and Pacers got hotter. By Jan. 21, the talks had progressed to the point that the Kings sent over MRIs of Stojakovic's back so that the Pacers' doctors could make sure that Stojakovic was healthy enough to justify the trade.

Things got even hotter on Monday, when the Pacers signed off on the deal. By Tuesday morning, Jan. 24, the Kings were ready to pull the trigger.

Walsh said that the Pacers scheduled a trade conference call with the NBA for 4 p.m. for the league to approve the trade. When the league tried to get Petrie to join the call, he was on the phone.

"We waited for about an hour and half," Walsh said. "By then, I knew there was trouble. Geoff got on the phone at about 5:30 p.m. and told me that the deal was off. That Ronnie's agent [Mark Stevens] had called and told him Ronnie didn't want to play there and then called the owners. It scared them both off.

"I told Geoff that I didn't think that Ronnie meant what his agent was saying and asked him if they'd wait until the morning for us to get this sorted out. But, to be honest, I thought it was dead. And I thought it might scare off the rest of the teams we had been talking to. I wasn't happy."

Walsh scheduled a 10 a.m. meeting the next day with Artest and Stevens. Over the course of the 12 hours or so before the meeting, the Pacers explored their legal options with the league. They believed Artest, or his agent, had violated parts of the collective bargaining agreement, and they were exploring whether they could suspend Artest without pay.

Late Tuesday, Stevens issued a statement saying that Artest didn't want to play in Sacramento:

"Ron Artest did not want to be traded to Sacramento weeks ago, and he does not want to be traded to Sacramento now. Basketball is Ron Artest's passion. In order for Ron to fully demonstrate his natural skills and abilities, to the best of his abilities, he not only must be in an environment that is conducive to his growth and development as a player, he must also ensure that his family is happy and content as well. Ron does not believe that will be the case if he were in Sacramento. Period."

Walsh still didn't believe that Artest actually meant that.

"I basically wanted to find out whether Ronnie felt the way his agent said he felt about the deal," Walsh said. "I tried to explain to Ronnie why the deal would be a good one for him. I really got the impression that Ronnie didn't have any real hang-ups about going to Sacramento."

According to Walsh, he believed something else was at play.

"I think people were telling Ronnie that if he held out, we would deal him to a team that he really wanted to go to, like one of the teams in L.A.," Walsh said. "I can't prove it. But I really felt, and I think Geoff felt, like there was something else going on. It didn't really have anything to do with Sacramento. I think he thought if this deal didn't work out, he'd get what he wants. I made it clear to him that it wasn't the case and that we had recourse available to us. He needed to get on with his career and start playing again. The path that he was taking wasn't going to allow that."

While Walsh said that he never threatened Artest with a suspension, it appears he did turn up the heat a bit. For their part, Artest and Stevens left the meeting without giving a firm indication which way they were leaning.

In the meeting, Artest and Stevens had agreed to speak with the Maloofs by phone. During that phone call, Walsh said he received an e-mail from Artest saying that he wanted the trade to go through. Shortly thereafter he received a call from Sacramento saying the deal was back on.

Postscript
The day after the trade, Walsh says that the both teams are better off.

"I think Ronnie will be great for them," Walsh said. "They're a much better team with Ronnie on it. I think he'll love Sacramento; it's kind of Indy West. He'll get there and be fine. He won't do the big things that got him in so much trouble here. As long as the team is playing well, I think they'll be surprised at how good a teammate he can be. It's just when the team is losing, Ronnie starts feeling pressure, and he loses it. They're going to have to be prepared for it."

With that said, when asked what he learned from the experience, Walsh said something that should frighten the Kings.

"I learned that when you add a dysfunctional person to a functional group, sooner or later, the whole group is dysfunctional," Walsh said. "I thought I knew that before, but I really know that now. You think the group will help the one player, but it's really the other way around."

As for the Pacers, Walsh said that adding Stojakovic will allow them to open up the floor as they did when Reggie Miller and Chris Mullin played for them.

"I'm not sure he's a perfect fit on our team as it stands right now," Walsh said. "But Rick is going to pull out some of the old plays and eventually I think we'll move to a different style of play. Peja will help us spread the floor, give [Pacers forward Jermaine O'Neal] more room to operate and free us up."

Walsh emphasized that the Pacers still believe Stojakovic, 28, has plenty of good years left in him. Injuries, not age, have kept him from playing up to his potential the past season and a half. With a change of scenery, a chip on his shoulder, and pending free agency, Stojakovic should have plenty of motivation to return to his former self.

For Indiana, this might present a new problem: If he does thrive, the Pacers might not be able to afford to keep him this summer when he hits unrestricted free agency.

Walsh said that because of NBA rules, he hasn't been able to discuss Stojakovic's impending free agency with him. Walsh wants to see how Stojakovic fits with his teammates and the coach before making a decision. But he seems pretty confident about this.

"If Peja returns to his old form," Walsh said, "Believe me, I'll find a way to pay him to come back next year."

Chad Ford covers the NBA for ESPN Insider.

 

[LPKingsFan]

Wow, quite a story. A couple things:

1. It's clear that the Maloofs are taking more and more of a role in personnell decisions. I think they must have forced Petrie's hand in this.

2. Can we get something like this for the Webber deal??

 

[SacKings384]

One thing I learned from this...

1.Artest's agent is a scumbag and was only looking out for himself. He wanted Ronny in L.A where he would clearly get more endorsements and media attention, and in tune putting more money in his pocket. What an ***...

 

[BigWaxer]

The thing about endorsements, record deals whatever that I don't understand.

The Maloofs do have some clout in this area. He may not get the "TV" face time in commercials like the big NIKE deal but to be honest I think Nike or a big sponser will not be using Artest no matter what market he is in. At least until he proves he has changed his ways.

Don't the Maloofs own a record label? Not sure maybe its just beer.

 

[John Galt]

Great story - I bag on journalists a lot, but Chad Ford earned his paycheck with this one.

 

[VF21]

I agree, Francisco. One article out of perhaps 50 over the years about the Kings and he finally gets one out there worth reading? Of course, a lot of it was about the Pacers...



As far as the Maloofs go, it is THEIR team. The ultimate responsibility for a decision like this has to rest with them. This isn't sending Bobby to the Grizzlies for Bonzi or even sending Mitch to Washington for Webber. This is going all-in with the tournament on the line. I would have been very, very surprised if it hadn't been the Maloofs making the decision and telling Petrie to see if he could get it done.

 

[PJAZZ19]

VF21--thanks for the story. In a sense, it makes me more comfortable with Artest...although I'm very trusting.