NBA BEAT Part 2 - LET'S GET PHYSICAL with RON ARTEST

James Loving/National Radio Text Service

Saturday, July 20, 2013

A BULL IN A CHINA CLOSET?

Ron Artest aka Metta World Peace loves to mix it up resulting in problems and trouble on and off the basketball court. Throughout his life he has been on an emotional rollercoaster. His behavior raises the question will the UFC be the next challenge for the man that claims to now be a peaceable when his NBA career comes to and end? For those in the know get this right... Artest is not Red Rider. The most recent controversial incident in his turbulent career was following the LA Lakers cutting him loose with their amnesty clause he adamantly insisted that he didn't want an NBA team to try and sign him but within days he changed his mind that he would accept an offer from a team in the major markets of Los Angeles or New York.

The LA Clippers failed to respond by his home town NY Knicks did. With his background and interest in the entertainment business New York was his best second option. The question it raises is what is more important being a professional NBA player or being in a city that can benefit his interest in the entertainment business.

During his 15-year NBA career he has played for five teams while his 2-year deal with the NY Knicks for the upcoming season will make it his sixth. From the time he was a rookie with the Chicago Bulls in the 1999-2000 season controversy has followed him. During his rookie season in Chicago, he was criticized for applying for a job at Circuit City in order to get an employee discount.

Artest was suspended for three games in 2003 for destroying a TV camera at Madison Square Garden, and for four games the same year for a confrontation with Miami Heat coach Pat Riley. He was also suspended for two games in the early 2004-05 season by Pacers coach Rick Carlisle after he allegedly asked for a month off because he was tired from promoting an R&B album for the group Allure on his production label.

In a December 2009 Sporting News interview, Artest admitted that he had led a "wild" lifestyle as a young player, and that he drank Hennessy cognac in the locker room at halftime when he was playing for the Bulls at the beginning of his NBA career.

He once attended a practice with the Indiana Pacers in a bath robe.

Artest was suspended for three games in 2003 for destroying a TV camera at Madison Square Garden, and for four games the same year for a confrontation with Miami Heat coach Pat Riley. He was also suspended for two games in the early 2004-05 season by Pacers coach Rick Carlisle after he allegedly asked for a month off because he was tired from promoting an R&B album for the group Allure on his production label.

The complex man's greatest claim to notorious fame was on November 19, 2004, Artest was at the center of an altercation among players and fans during a game in Auburn Hills, Michigan between Artest's then Indiana Pacers and the home team Detroit Pistons.

The brawl began when Artest fouled Pistons center Ben Wallace as Wallace was putting up a shot. Wallace, upset at being fouled hard when the game was effectively over (the Pacers led 97-82 with less than 50 seconds to go), responded by shoving Artest, leading to an altercation near the scorer's table. Artest walked to the sideline and lay down on the scorer's table.

Reacting to Wallace throwing something at Artest, Pistons fan John Green threw a cup of Diet Coke at Artest, hitting him. Artest jumped into the front-row seats and confronted a man he incorrectly believed to be responsible, which in turn erupted into a brawl between Pistons fans and several of the Pacers. Artest returned to the basketball court, and punched Pistons fan A.J. Shackleford, who was apparently taunting Artest verbally. This fight resulted in the game being stopped with less than a minute remaining. Artest's teammates Jermaine O'Neal and Stephen Jackson were suspended indefinitely the day after the game, along with Wallace.

On November 21, the NBA suspended Artest for the rest of the regular season, plus any playoff games. All told, Artest missed 86 games (73 regular season games plus 13 playoff games), the longest suspension for an on-court incident in NBA history. Eight other players (four Pacers and four Pistons) received suspensions, without pay, which ranged from one to thirty games in length. Each of the players involved were levied fines and ordered to do community service. Several fans were also charged and were banned from attending Pistons games for life. Artest lost approximately $5 million in salary due to the suspension.

There's more to the complex Ron Artest story involving bouts with the law. On March 5, 2007, Artest was arrested for domestic violence, and excused from the Sacramento Kings indefinitely by GM Geoff Petrie. On March 10, Kings announced that Artest would return to the team, while his case was being reviewed by the Placer County District Attorney. On May 3, he was sentenced to 20 days in jail and community service. Artest spent only 10 days in the jail, as the judge stayed 10 days of the sentence, and served the remainder in a work release program. On July 14, 2007, the NBA suspended Artest for seven games at the beginning of the 2007-08 NBA season for his legal problems.

If it's complex you're looking for then look at Ron Artest oh… I mean World Peace or whatever. The question now is with the 2-year Knicks deal can he finish out his NBA career without more controversy. If so he will become a 17-year NBA veteran with one of the most colorful on and off the court careers ever.

The teams that Artest played for include: 1999-2002 Chicago Bulls, 2002-2006 Indiana Pacers, 2006-2008 Sacramento Kings, 2008-2009 Houston Rockets, 2009-2013 Los Angeles Lakers and 2013-present the New York Knicks

Part 1 - IS RON ARTEST JUST A MESS?

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