Truth about Artest begins to emerge?

#1
http://www.indystar.com/articles/6/180617-4686-036.html

Truth about Artest begins to emerge

September 22, 2004

To the naked eye, it appeared that Ron Artest had turned a major corner last season. He was the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year, a star on a 61-victory team, and most remarkably, he made it through an entire regular season without suspensions or fines.

The deeper truth was, the problems never really went away, the nadir coming during those final weeks of the NBA playoffs when Artest's odd behavior became a detriment to his team.

It's been a couple of months since the Detroit Pistons sent the Pacers home, and the more we learn about what really went on in those final weeks, the more obvious it becomes that the Pacers need to send him on his merry way.

There's a reason Indiana management has floated Artest's name out there, specifically in relation to Peja Stojakovic, who is angling for a trade out of Sacramento:

They have reached the same conclusion.

Otherwise, why would they be looking to move the league's Defensive Player of the Year? Why would they be interested in getting rid of a player who, on the surface, seemed to get his act together last season?

Because as an organization, they know a lot more than they let on at the time. They know that Artest started reverting to his old ways in the middle of the playoff series against Miami, and that things only got worse in the series against Detroit.

The word of Artest's missteps during the playoffs came out in dribs and drabs last spring, the whispers coming from every corner of the team's locker room.

He was goofing off in practice, they said. He was bringing his perpetually stormy home life to work, they said. Some members of the organization even believe he quit on the team during Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals.

The most glaring problems, though, emerged in the hours before Game 6 in Detroit.

Artest missed practice the day before Game 6. He missed the team's charter flight to Detroit later that evening. He then missed a shoot-around before the biggest game of the season.

At the time, the Pacers chose to cover up for Artest -- or tell a baldfaced lie, if you want to be technical. They said he was suffering from migraines. Maybe they just got used to covering for Artest, or, perhaps, they were hoping to maintain his trade value, which will never be higher than it is now.

Of course, he didn't have migraines, a story nobody believed in the first place. A teammate shared the truth that day with The Star, saying, "He had some problems at home."

Then came Game 6 and the kind of pressure that separates the good players from the great ones. When the stakes were their highest, Artest crumbled, exhibiting the lack of control that nearly got him booted from the league one year earlier.

Even if you make the case that Detroit's Richard Hamilton dropped an elbow into Artest's gut to instigate the act, in the end, a player cannot retaliate with a forearm shiver that results in a flagrant foul -- and, for all intents and purposes, ends the Eastern Conference finals.

If the Pacers weren't sure whether they could trust Artest before the playoffs, they were certainly sure after the team was eliminated. Then, to make matters worse, Artest blew off a postseason meeting with Larry Bird, which is a terrific way to get yourself traded.

Clearly, the Pacers' small forward was not the only reason his team fell to Detroit in six games. The Pistons had a lot to do with that, as did injuries to Jermaine O'Neal and Jamaal Tinsley. If Reggie Miller had dunked the ball in Game 2, the story might have been far different.

But Artest is ticking, and the Pacers know it.

Already this summer, Artest has made some ridiculous noise that threatens to further strain his relationship with his teammates, and notably O'Neal.

He was asked by Slam Magazine if he took it as any kind of compliment that his name was being linked in trade talk with Stojakovic, who was an MVP candidate. Artest responded by making the case that he himself not only should have rated MVP consideration, but should have won the award, period.

"I thought I was the MVP last year because we had the best record and I was the best player on the team," he told Slam. "So I felt that I should have at least been talked about for it."

Huh?

We don't know if the Pacers have a subscription to Slam Magazine, but believe me, they've seen that quote.

In the end, the Pacers might not be able to get fair value for Artest, and a trade -- for Stojakovic or anybody else -- might not happen. But they're going to try. After what happened last spring, after their mercurial star confirmed many of their worst suspicions, they're definitely going to try.

Bob Kravitz is a columnist for The Indianapolis Star. Call him at (317) 444-6643 or e-mail
bob.kravitz@indystar.com <mailto:bob.kravitz@indystar.com>

 
#3
bibbyweb said:
Good thing the Kings Management were able to handle the Peja situation well and didn't grant the trade going for Artest. ;)
Yep, that would have put the Kings from NBA Elite to playoffs contenders category. However, I'm still not sure how the things will develop once the training camp starts.
 

piksi

Hall of Famer
#4
sloter said:
Yep, that would have put the Kings from NBA Elite to playoffs contenders category. However, I'm still not sure how the things will develop once the training camp starts.
it will be a blast
 
#5
Artest is on crack.

He says Kevin Garnett should not be MVP, and then goes on to say that he should be MVP ? WTF ?

He wasn't even the best player on his team. There are at least 20 guys ahead of him who I would have chosen to be MVP's.
 
#6
My guess is this article is a precursor to an Artest trade(doubtful it's to the Kings). The team let's things like this leak out and has a writer print a story basically saying how bad of a teammate he is so there is not a huge uproar when he is indeed traded.
 

HndsmCelt

Hall of Famer
#7
Ryle said:
My guess is this article is a precursor to an Artest trade(doubtful it's to the Kings). The team let's things like this leak out and has a writer print a story basically saying how bad of a teammate he is so there is not a huge uproar when he is indeed traded.
Actualy most teams that are serious about a trade with troubled players down play the trouble untill AFTER the trade. Artest's value drops everytime one of these stories surfaces.
 
#8
Ryle said:
My guess is this article is a precursor to an Artest trade(doubtful it's to the Kings). The team let's things like this leak out and has a writer print a story basically saying how bad of a teammate he is so there is not a huge uproar when he is indeed traded.
Right you are. You must have worked with the Kings organization, the media or a public relations firm. Or you're just very street savvy because that's exactly what teams often do prior to a blockbuster trade. That's why I thought the Kings were setting up a Bobby Jackson trade earlier this summer when Grant Napear blasted BoJax for not trying to play during the playoffs. First you soften up the fan base, then you deal the player - especially if the player is very good or very popular.
 
#10
Heuge said:
This is why I wouldn't like to see that proposed Peja trade. Artest is just too risky of a personality.
I doubt Petrie makes that trade. It's got bad news written all over it. A guy like Artest is going to eventually be shipped off because of idiocy. Once a guy's been in the league for a few years, badass behavior seems to become more and more engrained, at least until they hit their 30s and maybe they've mellowed a bit (like Schweed). Artest is 24.
 
#11
Guess Artest is bad news for any team with the kind of stuff he has been saying. The Pacers are going to have a tough time next season with these comments. Our Peja-Webber situation seems much better than theirs.