By Ian Thomsen
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/ian_thomsen/03/08/artest/index.html
Of all the befuddling personalities and contract issues confronting the Sacramento Kings, guess which is near the bottom of the list?
Ron Artest.
If the Kings were to stack all of their worries and concerns from top to bottom, the penthouse of their angst would include the following:
• Can they -- or should they -- trade Mike Bibby?
• Will the NBA be able to strike an agreement with the local government on a new arena to keep the franchise in Sacramento?
• How quickly can they rebuild around shooting guard Kevin Martin and center Brad Miller, the two starters most likely to remain in Sacramento beyond next season?
• Can team president Geoff Petrie come up with a rebounding, shot-blocking big man to complement the untradeable Miller?
• Is Eric Musselman the right coach to bring in the new era?
This is not to diminish Artest's latest trouble. He was arrested Monday on suspicion of domestic violence and using force or violence to prevent a woman from reporting a crime. (The Sacramento Bee identified the woman as his wife, Kimsha. Deputies have responded to five 911 calls from Artest's home since August, including two domestic disturbances between Artest and his wife.) He was released from custody after posting a $50,000 bond, and the team has sidelined Artest indefinitely, with pay, pending further information. Artest is scheduled to be arraigned on the two felony charges March 22.
If the issue is whether the Kings and the NBA should be ashamed by yet another case of extremely bad judgment by one of its most infamous stars, the answer is yes. Absolutely.
But if the issue is limited to the prospects of the Kings' basketball club, and whether prospects have been wrecked by its investment in Artest, then the answer is no.
That's because Artest isn't necessarily of their future. He's making $7.5 million this year, with salaries of $7.4 million each of the following two. But he can -- and is expected to -- opt out after next season in search of a long-term deal.
Will Sacramento vest him with a five- or six-year contract worth $10 million or more annually? Probably not.
Would you pin the goals of a franchise on such an unreliable person? Once you give Artest a long-term contract, you're at his mercy.
The Kings haven't given up on this season. A team official insists they would still prefer to make the playoffs for the 10th straight year at the expense of moving up in the lottery, and as of Thursday morning they were just a game out of the playoffs at 28-32. But the odds of catching the No. 8 Clippers will be slimmer without Artest, who had been playing at a high level since January.
In any case, it's clear to the Maloof brothers that their team needs an overhaul; otherwise they wouldn't have been so willing to move Bibby at the trade deadline last month. A major renovation will be underway soon. But even if they can't trade Artest after the latest incident, don't assume they're going to rebuild around him.
Other issues must be resolved first. They must decide whether to seek a trade this summer for Bibby, who turns 29 in May. A lot will be riding on whether he continues to build on his recently improved play: In the eight games since the Kings failed to move him to Cleveland in exchange for cap space this summer, Bibby has averaged 20.8 points while converting 46.6 percent overall (which isn't bad considering almost half his shots were coming from the three-point line).
If Bibby gets hot down the stretch, will he pursue a longer contract by opting out this summer from his remaining two years at $28 million? In which case the Kings could have enough cap space to move to the top of the Rashard Lewis sweepstakes. But it's more likely the Kings will trade him.
Miller has three full years and $34 million still on the books, which makes it difficult to move him, while Martin isn't going anywhere -- he's a 24-year-old with a career-high 21.4 points while shooting 49.6 percent. Martin has averaged 27.7 points in Artest's absence this season, and the Kings are 5-4 in those games. One idea would be to rebuild around those two by trying to find an athletic big man to complement Miller, and a defense-capable point guard to replace Bibby should he leave.
As for Artest, he's going to be harder to trade than ever based on this latest incident. Instead of giving him away, the Kings can spend whatever is left of his current season -- who knows when he'll be allowed to return? -- as well as all of next year trying to increase his value. The best way to do that is by improving the team around him.
Artest has already turned into a bargain. It's clear that the Kings got the best of last year's trade that sent Peja Stojakovic to Indiana for Artest. Stojakovic has played just 53 games since then while signing for $63 million over five years with the Hornets, which he would not have received from the Maloofs. They were going to lose Stojakovic anyway, and in the exchange Artest came in and saved last season for Sacramento.
The latest incident has created a new set of issues. When all of the evidence is in and both sides of the story have been told, how will the public feel about Artest? It could ruin his remaining time in Sacramento.
But it has also brought his future with the Kings sharply into focus. It's not as if they've made a huge investment in Artest. Unless his production rises to an elite level while lifting his team into contention, it's likely that his long-term future (if he has such a future in the NBA) will be played out in another city.
The Kings' efforts should be focused on bolstering the other four positions. Reinvent the Kings as an up-tempo team that runs off its defense -- then in a year or two participate in a sign-and-trade for Artest. Or just let him walk.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/ian_thomsen/03/08/artest/index.html
Of all the befuddling personalities and contract issues confronting the Sacramento Kings, guess which is near the bottom of the list?
Ron Artest.
If the Kings were to stack all of their worries and concerns from top to bottom, the penthouse of their angst would include the following:
• Can they -- or should they -- trade Mike Bibby?
• Will the NBA be able to strike an agreement with the local government on a new arena to keep the franchise in Sacramento?
• How quickly can they rebuild around shooting guard Kevin Martin and center Brad Miller, the two starters most likely to remain in Sacramento beyond next season?
• Can team president Geoff Petrie come up with a rebounding, shot-blocking big man to complement the untradeable Miller?
• Is Eric Musselman the right coach to bring in the new era?
This is not to diminish Artest's latest trouble. He was arrested Monday on suspicion of domestic violence and using force or violence to prevent a woman from reporting a crime. (The Sacramento Bee identified the woman as his wife, Kimsha. Deputies have responded to five 911 calls from Artest's home since August, including two domestic disturbances between Artest and his wife.) He was released from custody after posting a $50,000 bond, and the team has sidelined Artest indefinitely, with pay, pending further information. Artest is scheduled to be arraigned on the two felony charges March 22.
If the issue is whether the Kings and the NBA should be ashamed by yet another case of extremely bad judgment by one of its most infamous stars, the answer is yes. Absolutely.
But if the issue is limited to the prospects of the Kings' basketball club, and whether prospects have been wrecked by its investment in Artest, then the answer is no.
That's because Artest isn't necessarily of their future. He's making $7.5 million this year, with salaries of $7.4 million each of the following two. But he can -- and is expected to -- opt out after next season in search of a long-term deal.
Will Sacramento vest him with a five- or six-year contract worth $10 million or more annually? Probably not.
Would you pin the goals of a franchise on such an unreliable person? Once you give Artest a long-term contract, you're at his mercy.
The Kings haven't given up on this season. A team official insists they would still prefer to make the playoffs for the 10th straight year at the expense of moving up in the lottery, and as of Thursday morning they were just a game out of the playoffs at 28-32. But the odds of catching the No. 8 Clippers will be slimmer without Artest, who had been playing at a high level since January.
In any case, it's clear to the Maloof brothers that their team needs an overhaul; otherwise they wouldn't have been so willing to move Bibby at the trade deadline last month. A major renovation will be underway soon. But even if they can't trade Artest after the latest incident, don't assume they're going to rebuild around him.
Other issues must be resolved first. They must decide whether to seek a trade this summer for Bibby, who turns 29 in May. A lot will be riding on whether he continues to build on his recently improved play: In the eight games since the Kings failed to move him to Cleveland in exchange for cap space this summer, Bibby has averaged 20.8 points while converting 46.6 percent overall (which isn't bad considering almost half his shots were coming from the three-point line).
If Bibby gets hot down the stretch, will he pursue a longer contract by opting out this summer from his remaining two years at $28 million? In which case the Kings could have enough cap space to move to the top of the Rashard Lewis sweepstakes. But it's more likely the Kings will trade him.
Miller has three full years and $34 million still on the books, which makes it difficult to move him, while Martin isn't going anywhere -- he's a 24-year-old with a career-high 21.4 points while shooting 49.6 percent. Martin has averaged 27.7 points in Artest's absence this season, and the Kings are 5-4 in those games. One idea would be to rebuild around those two by trying to find an athletic big man to complement Miller, and a defense-capable point guard to replace Bibby should he leave.
As for Artest, he's going to be harder to trade than ever based on this latest incident. Instead of giving him away, the Kings can spend whatever is left of his current season -- who knows when he'll be allowed to return? -- as well as all of next year trying to increase his value. The best way to do that is by improving the team around him.
Artest has already turned into a bargain. It's clear that the Kings got the best of last year's trade that sent Peja Stojakovic to Indiana for Artest. Stojakovic has played just 53 games since then while signing for $63 million over five years with the Hornets, which he would not have received from the Maloofs. They were going to lose Stojakovic anyway, and in the exchange Artest came in and saved last season for Sacramento.
The latest incident has created a new set of issues. When all of the evidence is in and both sides of the story have been told, how will the public feel about Artest? It could ruin his remaining time in Sacramento.
But it has also brought his future with the Kings sharply into focus. It's not as if they've made a huge investment in Artest. Unless his production rises to an elite level while lifting his team into contention, it's likely that his long-term future (if he has such a future in the NBA) will be played out in another city.
The Kings' efforts should be focused on bolstering the other four positions. Reinvent the Kings as an up-tempo team that runs off its defense -- then in a year or two participate in a sign-and-trade for Artest. Or just let him walk.
