JO interview

[exodus]

For O'Neal, Artest relationship shot

By Peter May, Globe Staff | December 15, 2005

Jermaine O'Neal feels betrayed. The cocaptain of the Indiana Pacers feels tired. He said that having to deal with the latest, and he hopes last, Ron Artest flap has been ''like a slap in the face" because no one had Artest's back more than he did.

Boston.com

Sign up for: Globe Headlines e-mail | Breaking News Alerts Whether it was tolerating Artest's daily zaniness or coming to his defense in the utter chaos of Nov. 19, 2004, at the Palace of Auburn Hills, ''I was the guy who stood up for him. I was the guy who vouched for him," O'Neal said in a lengthy discourse on Artest's absence and Artest's trade demand prior to last night's 85-71 loss to the Celtics.

''I don't hate him as a person. I wish him the best of luck," O'Neal said. ''I hope he achieves what he wants elsewhere. But as a player who has been there for him and been involved in certain situations with him, and for him, you expect more. But life isn't about getting what you want. Sometimes you have to deal with harder situations. This is harder to accept. I accepted it. I lost a lot. I have stepped up and vouched for him. Ron Artest doesn't matter to me as a teammate."

O'Neal, the Pacers' leading scorer and rebounder (he had 14 points and 10 rebounds last night), and best and highest-paid player, said he has two people in mind who would be more than suitable replacements for Artest: former teammate Al Harrington, now with Atlanta, and Bonzi Wells, now with Sacramento. Artest was not with the Pacers last night and Indiana president Donnie Walsh is fielding calls about him. Something could break today, when most players, such as Wells, who signed deals or were traded over the summer, can be relocated.

Harrington would be a natural, O'Neal surmised, because of his familiarity with the system and the team. Harrington spent the first six years of his career with the Pacers before being traded to the Hawks in the summer of 2004 for Stephen Jackson. And, O'Neal added, ''If it doesn't work out this year, [his salary] comes off the books."

As for Wells, O'Neal said, ''He fits in with what we do. We have a defensive-oriented team. He's a 6-6, 6-7 body who can play two different positions and thinks defense first. You deal [for] a player like that, it's easy for him to fit in, rather than a player who thinks offense first or pass, pass, or [dribbles] between the legs. We're not that type of team. There's been a lot of talk about [Peja] Stojakovic and I would definitely accept him with open arms. But if I had a preference, it would be Al or Bonzi Wells."Continued...

What if Artest had a change of heart? What if Artest showed up tomorrow at practice and said he had acted improperly, that he was happy where he was, that he was ready to play tomorrow night against the Jazz, and apologized to everyone? Here's what would happen -- the Pacers would have an angry cocaptain and, as O'Neal sees it, an angry team as well. That would be your proverbial nonstarter.

''It is over," O'Neal said with undisguised finality. ''This relationship cannot be mended. The Pacers' front office cannot ask us to mend this relationship. I won't personally accept them asking me because then we'll have another issue. And it's unfair to the guys who come out.

''This has been going on for a couple days," O'Neal said. Artest's trade request surfaced Sunday in the Indianapolis Star and Walsh said a day later that he would work to accommodate him. ''Nobody has heard from Ron. Players [have] issues with coaches, organizations, all kinds of different situations. So you can never fault a guy for not being happy, for whatever reason. But one thing you always have to do is you have to stay on board with the people on board with you. It can't be about Ron all the time. It can't be about personal issues. You're the second leading scorer and you [want] more shots? I don't understand that. To me, it's so disrespectful to me and my team. That relationship is over. There's no 'I'm going to change my mind.' That can't happen because that is the last straw you can take as a player. Especially in our situation."

No one, O'Neal said, has talked about anything other than Artest over the last 72 hours. In that span of time, the Pacers had not played any games (their previous game had been last Saturday, a home win over Memphis) and, naturally, there was little else to talk about.

''We're coming off two great wins, two of our best wins of the season," O'Neal said, referring to the victories over Memphis and the Wizards. ''We really played as a team. And nobody wants to talk about the game. Nobody is ever talking about what we're doing, all the hard work that guys put in during the summertime, during the season, all the great things they do off the court, all the great things they do on the court, is never, ever known, because we're always talking about something else that isn't basketball-related. As a player, you get tired. You just tire out."

Artest, said O'Neal, has let his personal desires, be they shots, a better contract, or more respect, get in the way of the only thing that should matter: winning.

''Everybody gets the benefits from winning," O'Neal said. ''Ultimately, you play this game to win, and that's all it should be about. It shouldn't be about shots. It shouldn't be about contracts. Because if you win, you're going to get exactly what you're looking for. That's the nature of the game and I don't quite know if [Artest] understands that."

Page 2 of 2 --What if Artest had a change of heart? What if Artest showed up tomorrow at practice and said he had acted improperly, that he was happy where he was, that he was ready to play tomorrow night against the Jazz, and apologized to everyone? Here's what would happen -- the Pacers would have an angry cocaptain and, as O'Neal sees it, an angry team as well. That would be your proverbial nonstarter.

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Boston.com

Sign up for: Globe Headlines e-mail | Breaking News Alerts ''It is over," O'Neal said with undisguised finality. ''This relationship cannot be mended. The Pacers' front office cannot ask us to mend this relationship. I won't personally accept them asking me because then we'll have another issue. And it's unfair to the guys who come out.

''This has been going on for a couple days," O'Neal said. Artest's trade request surfaced Sunday in the Indianapolis Star and Walsh said a day later that he would work to accommodate him. ''Nobody has heard from Ron. Players [have] issues with coaches, organizations, all kinds of different situations. So you can never fault a guy for not being happy, for whatever reason. But one thing you always have to do is you have to stay on board with the people on board with you. It can't be about Ron all the time. It can't be about personal issues. You're the second leading scorer and you [want] more shots? I don't understand that. To me, it's so disrespectful to me and my team. That relationship is over. There's no 'I'm going to change my mind.' That can't happen because that is the last straw you can take as a player. Especially in our situation."

No one, O'Neal said, has talked about anything other than Artest over the last 72 hours. In that span of time, the Pacers had not played any games (their previous game had been last Saturday, a home win over Memphis) and, naturally, there was little else to talk about.

''We're coming off two great wins, two of our best wins of the season," O'Neal said, referring to the victories over Memphis and the Wizards. ''We really played as a team. And nobody wants to talk about the game. Nobody is ever talking about what we're doing, all the hard work that guys put in during the summertime, during the season, all the great things they do off the court, all the great things they do on the court, is never, ever known, because we're always talking about something else that isn't basketball-related. As a player, you get tired. You just tire out."

Artest, said O'Neal, has let his personal desires, be they shots, a better contract, or more respect, get in the way of the only thing that should matter: winning.

''Everybody gets the benefits from winning," O'Neal said. ''Ultimately, you play this game to win, and that's all it should be about. It shouldn't be about shots. It shouldn't be about contracts. Because if you win, you're going to get exactly what you're looking for. That's the nature of the game and I don't quite know if [Artest] understands that."

© Copyright 2005 Globe Newspaper Company.

Previous 1 2

[Wretch]

We want to deal with this kind of thing? It's funny, because as people are talking about he may not be a distraction here or whatnot, but this whole recent trade talk about Artest IS in fact a distraction cause by the Heavy Duty Whoopass Juice, Tru Warrior spokesman himself.

Artest is an oustanding player. I LOVE his game. But the man is just not stable. For a franchise looking for exactly that (and fans who can't go a day without making a comment about continuity and stability) I can't believe we'd actually consider him.

This just blows my mind.

[pathway23]

Artest has a few screws loose...I don't want to take a chance on him. But I do want the Hawks to get involved in a 3 way with Al if they can get a good deal, I think the Pacers really want Al and I'm not convinced we can sign him to an extension.

[chillzatl]

I don't want him here. But if they want Al, and another team wants to get involved and pick up Artest, i'm all for it.

[exodus]

You aren't seeing the big picture. Artest might be a nutjob but so was Rodman. And while the Hawks would just be renting him if they did a two way trade the possibilities of improving the Hawks roster by moving him somewhere else are two good to pass up.

if they can get Artest while only giving up Harrington I think they have to do it. It opens up so many possibities to make a deal with a team looking to win now.

[VDiLetto]

I think there is a good chacne of a 3 way that gives Al to the Pacers, Artest to someone and a PG/big man to us.

[Buzzard]

Quote:

---

You aren't seeing the big picture. Artest might be a nutjob but so was Rodman. And while the Hawks would just be renting him if they did a two way trade the possibilities of improving the Hawks roster by moving him somewhere else are two good to pass up.

if they can get Artest while only giving up Harrington I think they have to do it. It opens up so many possibities to make a deal with a team looking to win now.

---

Pacers are going to have a hard time getting rid of Artest. Think about it, how many games has Artest missed over the last four years due to suspensions? Now how many did Rodman miss for the same reason over any four year period in his career?

There is your big picture and now Artest is playing head case again! He will soon be known as the TO of the NBA, you can bet on that....

[exodus]

This type of situation is not new. Sprewell had a similar suspension after trying to STRANGLE HIS COACH. Can't get much worse than that. Yet he came back and was very productive in New York, quickly becoming a fan favorite

Rasheed was always seen to be a major head case, getting technicals all the time and getting thrown out of games. When Detroit traded for him people were saying he would be disruptive and wasn't worth the trouble. So how did that work out?

The Hawks would just be renting him for awhile. Contending teams might see him as the piece that puts them over the top and might be willing to part with a young big or pg to get him.

[macdaddy]

Its an insult to Rodman and Sheed to compare them to Artest. Rodman never attacked fans, and he was a key component to a lot of championships. Sheed may have gotten T'ed up a lot but what teammates have anything bad to say about them.

Artest is a great player but he has nothing to show for it.

[exodus]

The players disagree:

"Boston Celtics forward Paul Pierce, who's had many bruising battles with Artest over the years, would love to have him on his side for a change. "Without question, I definitely wouldn't mind going to war with Ron Artest," Pierce told the Boston Herald." Indianapolis Star

"Golden State's players were of the same mind-set. "He's one of the top players in this league," Jason Richardson told the Contra Costa Times. "To get a guy like that . . ." "He'd be great (for us)," Troy Murphy added. "It's too quiet around here."

[Lascar78]

Quote:

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This type of situation is not new. Sprewell had a similar suspension after trying to STRANGLE HIS COACH. Can't get much worse than that. Yet he came back and was very productive in New York, quickly becoming a fan favorite

---

I think that's a very good analogy. I think they're very similar. Mainly, I think they both will always be selfish at heart, and never will be quite "right". But I think that after each one had their "epiphany", they realized that they couldn't keep it up and had to have their attitude under control. I don't expect Artest to have any other major episodes in his career, although I am sure he will have some minor ones. That does not mean I naively think he suddenly transformed from an [censored] to an angel, but a year off without pay gives you plenty of time to think about keeping it under conttrol, and that it isn't worth it

[Lascar78]

Quote:

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Its an insult to Rodman and Sheed to compare them to Artest. Rodman never attacked fans

---

Are you kidding me? This is a case of looking at a guy more favorably after time passes. If a fan had thrown a beer cup at rodman right after an altercation, I'd put the odds of him running into the stands somewhere around 90%. What wouldn't have happenned is that the other bulls would have just pulled him back instead of joining him.

Think about what it really is that Ron has done, other than the brawl? Given the fans the finger, broken a camera, broken a picture on the wall I think, basically just externalizing his anger. He also asked for time off which I would consider his worst offense, but I think that that is when his craziness was peaking in his life.

Was rodman all that different? Is it better to kick a cameraman in the balls than it is to break a camera? I don't think so. Rodman had plenty of episodes. I would put Rodman sitting alone in a car with a gun contemplating suicide in the pistons' parking lot as the peak of his craziness, and that shows more issues than asking for time off to me. Again, I don't remember all the rodman episodes because that's not what you'll see repeated on the highlight reels, but rodman was plenty crazy, and a big time [censored] also.

The difference between the two is that fans back then were smarter than to throw a cup of beer on a player.

Rodman was a role player on great championship teams, ron artest could be the #2 guy on a great championship team. He didn't get a chance to try last year, and as an extension, this year. But he is a better player although he has obviously accomplished much less.

[Vafan]

You gotta ask this question. If someone threw a cup of beer at you, you wouldn't want to beat up that person? If we get Artest, he is a major talent. You all make it out like Harrington is a All Star. He is putting on good numbers on a bad team. Artest is putting up better numbers on a good team. He could probably put up major numbers on our team.

[Lascar78]

sorry for the triple post. Here's an article on rodman, as a reminder

Rodman, King or Queen of Rebounds?

By Mike Puma

Special to ESPN.com

"Dennis said, 'I know that I'll crash. The money will be gone, the fame will be gone. But in my heart, I'll know that I lived the way I wanted to live. And I'm okay. I had nothing before and I'll end up with nothing,' " said Sports Illustrated writer Michael Silver on ESPN Classic's SportsCentury series.

Dennis Rodman brought color to the NBA, both literally and figuratively. Fans had a better chance of guessing his rebound total than what shade of the rainbow might shoot through his hair on any given night.

Rodman added body piercings and tattoos to the mix, only bolstering his image as a bad boy. On the court, the lanky 6-foot-8 forward was a savage rebounder and defender who forged a standout career by leaving the scoring to others.

In 14 seasons, Rodman averaged 7.3 points and 13.1 rebounds. For seven consecutive years he led the league in rebounding, an NBA record.

"There's nobody out there who can do what I do," Rodman wrote in his autobiography, Bad As I Wanna Be.

Only Wilt Chamberlain, with 10, won more rebounding titles than Rodman, who played for five championship teams and appeared in two All-Star Games. Twice the league's defensive player of the year, Rodman made the all-defensive first team seven times.

But for all his accomplishments, Rodman is remembered more for creating controversy and trouble, especially his 11-game suspension in 1997 for kicking a cameraman in the groin. His outrageous behavior peaked in the mid-1990s when he became romantically involved with pop icon Madonna and later appeared at a book signing wearing a wedding dress.

Rodman's moodiness - besides suspensions he missed practices and games with the Detroit Pistons and San Antonio Spurs because he was upset with management - made him one of the game's most unpredictable players.

"He scares both coaches every time he steps on the court," said Bob Hill, who coached Rodman with the Spurs.

The oldest of Philander and Shirley Rodman's three children, Dennis was born on May 13, 1961 in Trenton, N.J. But Philander, who was enlisted in the Air Force, lived up to his name and abandoned the family. Shirley took the children and moved to Dallas in 1965 and filed for divorce. She then took odd jobs - as many as four at once - to support the family.

Dennis was an introvert who showed little athletic inclination. Only 5-foot-6, he was cut from the football team his freshman year at South Oak Cliff High School. He later quit the basketball team midway through his freshman season, unhappy with riding the bench.

With no prospects after graduation in 1979, Rodman took a series of menial jobs. While an overnight janitor at the Dallas-Fort Worth airport, he was arrested for stealing watches from a store in the airport. When the police recovered the watches and learned that Rodman gave them away, the charges were dropped.

A friend of Rodman's family alerted the coaching staff at Cooke County Junior College in Gainesville, Texas, that Rodman, who spurted from under six-foot to 6-foot-7 after high school, had developed into a force on the playgrounds. He lasted one semester at Cooke County, averaging 17.6 points and 13.3 rebounds, before flunking out.

In his brief stay, he was noticed by Southeastern Oklahoma State, and went there. Named first-team NAIA All-American three straight seasons, he averaged 25.7 points and 15.7 rebounds for his career.

At the Portsmouth Invitational, a pre-draft camp for NBA hopefuls, Rodman's stock soared as he won MVP honors. In 1986, the Pistons made the 25-year-old their second pick (No. 27 overall) in the draft.

Rodman played sparingly as a rookie, averaging 6.5 points and 4.3 rebounds. He made waves after Detroit was eliminated by Boston in the 1987 playoffs when he criticized Larry Bird's game and said that the only reason Bird won three MVPs is that he's white.

In 1987-88, Rodman averaged a career-high 11.6 points and increased his rebounding average to 8.7.

After leading the league in field-goal percentage at 59.5 percent the following season, in which the Pistons swept the Lakers in the 1989 NBA Finals, Rodman emerged as a starter. He was selected to the 1990 All-Star Game as a reserve and was named defensive player of the year after averaging 9.7 rebounds. The Pistons repeated as NBA champions with Rodman averaging 8.5 rebounds in the playoffs.

In 1990-91, Rodman again received defensive player of the year recognition and he finished second to David Robinson by averaging 12.5 rebounds.

His first rebounding title came the following season, when he averaged 18.7 rebounds, the league's highest mark since Chamberlain's 19.2 in 1971-72.

Rodman's life encountered a tailspin in May 1992 when Chuck Daly, whom the forward considered something of a father figure, resigned as coach. Rodman responded by skipping the start of preseason camp. After reporting, he was suspended without pay on November 20 and incurred $68,000 in fines.

That September, on his daughter Alexis' fourth birthday, Rodman had married Annie Bakes, with whom he had a relationship since 1986. By December, the marriage was floundering and Bakes took Alexis back to her hometown of Sacramento, devastating Rodman.

In February 1993, Rodman was found asleep in his truck in the parking lot outside the Palace of Auburn Hills with a loaded .22 caliber rifle. Rodman denied reports that he was considering suicide.

With all the turmoil, Rodman still averaged 18.3 rebounds to claim his second straight title. Despite missing 20 games, he collected a league best 1,132 rebounds.

Although he had three years and $11.8 million remaining on his contract, Rodman wanted a trade. He got his wish on Oct. 1, 1993, when the Pistons dealt him to the Spurs.

Before playing his first game for them, Rodman opted for a makeover by shaving his head and dying the remaining hair blonde. The new look only added to Rodman's growing bad boy image.

In December 1993, he was suspended one game and fined $7,500 for head-butting the Bulls' Stacey King. Less than two weeks later, Rodman was fined $10,000 for refusing to leave the court after being ejected. In March 1994 he head-butted Utah's John Stockton and was fined $5,000.

Despite these misadventures, Rodman won his third straight rebounding title, averaging 17.3. But his biggest catch was Madonna. The two had a highly publicized romance that lasted two months in 1994. Perhaps taking a cue from the Material Girl, Rodman got even more outrageous, adding cross-dressing to his resume.

Before the 1994-95 season, Rodman was upset when the Spurs refused to extend his contract. He took a leave of absence until December 12. After joining the team, he suffered a shoulder separation in a motorcycle accident, limiting his season to 49 games. He still qualified for the rebounding title, and won his fourth straight by averaging 16.8.

After the season, the Spurs traded him to the Bulls for Will Perdue. He won a fifth consecutive rebounding title by averaging 14.9 and helped bring a championship back to Chicago after a two-year absence. In Game 2 against Seattle, he tied a Finals record with 11 offensive rebounds.

Rodman received a $9-million contract for 1996-97 and responded by winning a sixth straight rebounding title, averaging 16.1. But he made more news for receiving an 11-game suspension - the second longest in NBA history - for intentionally kicking cameraman Eugene Amos in the groin after tripping over Amos while chasing a loose ball. Rodman paid Amos $200,000 to drop all legal charges. The Bulls won another title.

Rodman's string of rebounding championships reached seven in 1998 when he averaged 15 and the Bulls won their third straight title. A free agent after the season, he signed with the Lakers in February 1999, but was released after 23 games. In his final season (1999-2000), he appeared in 12 games for Dallas.

Since retiring from the NBA, Newport Beach (Calif.) police have gone to Rodman's home more than 70 times because of loud parties. He also was convicted of drunken driving. In 2002, he was arrested for obstructing officers investigating a code violation at his seaside restaurant. Prosecutors did not press charges.

[exodus]

Quote:

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Its an insult to Rodman and Sheed to compare them to Artest. Rodman never attacked fans

---

ROFL. Rodman kicked a photographer in the balls for no reason. Sheed was getting himself thrown out of tight games because he couldn't stop screaming at the refs.

Before the brawl Artest was actually not seen as being as much of a disruptive influence as those two. all he was really notorious for was getting a lot of flagrant foul calls, which had been happening less often.

And I was watching that Detroit-Indy game live. All Artest did was give Wallace a hard foul and when Wallace pushed him angrily Artest backed off completely. He was totally in

control until that beer hit him in the face.

[drzachary]

Quote:

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And I was watching that Detroit-Indy game live. All Artest did was give Wallace a hard foul and when Wallace pushed him angrily Artest backed off completely. He was totally in control until that beer hit him in the face.

---

I just LOVE how he layed down on the table. Such absurdity!

[exodus]

It was pretty funny actually. But he was trying to stay calm. I think he did that just to mock Wallace.

[Lascar78]

Quote:

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I just LOVE how he layed down on the table. Such absurdity!

---

Point taken. But if the cup doesn't hit, it's a barely noticable incident in which artest was joking around and showing restrint.

Quote:

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You gotta ask this question. If someone threw a cup of beer at you, you wouldn't want to beat up that person? If we get Artest, he is a major talent. You all make it out like Harrington is a All Star. He is putting on good numbers on a bad team. Artest is putting up better numbers on a good team. He could probably put up major numbers on our team.

---

In life, yes. If I was a paid baskeball playing millionaire, I'd like to think that no. But who knows.

Quote:

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ROFL. Rodman kicked a photographer in the balls for no reason. Sheed was getting himself thrown out of tight games because he couldn't stop screaming at the refs.

---

AND he headbutted multiple players

AND he requested a trade just like artest

AND he refused to show up to games and practices, which I supppose would be in the same ballpark as asking for time off for the album

Again, I don't think Artest is an angel, and it wouldn't be risk free, but the man isn't a monster.

[Yeti]

I think you can put an Artest on a veteran team, but on a team of rookies he could cause a lot of damage with his attitude. Great talent, but do you want to take that chance? - - a bit like the T.O. question.

[Packfill]

Quote:

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I think you can put an Artest on a veteran team, but on a team of rookies he could cause a lot of damage with his attitude. Great talent, but do you want to take that chance? - - a bit like the T.O. question.

---

This is exactly what it boils down to. If the Hawks had a Michael Jordan, an unquestioned leader, then it is much easier to control/tolerate the one talented miscreant. The Hawks don't have a Michael Jordan - and a veteran coach with three rings, Artest would poison the Hawks lockerroom - particularly if Al is jettisoned in the process.

Artest is exactly like T.O., putting his needs before the needs of a team. I highly doubt BK would willingly bring such a time bomb into such a precocious locker room.