Ron Artest Probably Going to the Lakers - Jets Insider.com Forums

VincenzoTestaverde · 07-02-2009, 07:19 PM

Lakers are going to be stacked next season.

Artest says he's signing with Lakers (UPDATE)

Shaq can have LeBron. Ron Artest says he'll take Kobe.

Artest, whose versatility and toughness have made him one of the most coveted and combustible players in the NBA, told CBSSports.com Thursday that he's signing with the Lakers.

"I'm definitely going to L.A. -- to sign, yeah," Artest said in a phone interview. "Lakers, Lakers, Lakers. I'm in L.A. right now."

Artest said he met with Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss Thursday and previously had spoken with Lakers coach Phil Jackson. He was en route to his financial manager's office, where he planned to huddle on the phone with his agent, David Bauman, to finalize details.

Artest's exuberance -- he spent the whole summer in L.A., including several appearances at Lakers home games during the NBA Finals -- got ahead of the process a bit. Other teams that made overtures for Artest -- including the Cavaliers -- have not yet been notified that Artest is signing with the Lakers. (Consider them notified.) Bauman has spoken with Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak, but parameters have not yet been agreed to. Still, it's pretty clear where Artest is going.

"I don't really care about the money," Artest said. "I'll play there for nothing. ... L.A. was very interested in me, and they got me."

UPDATE: Lakers spokesman John Black declined to comment on Artest's assertion, but another person with knowledge of the situation corroborated Artest's account that he will sign with L.A. pending the financial parameters being finalized.

Only 24 hours earlier, the buzz was focused on Artest joining LeBron James and Shaquille O'Neal in Cleveland in what would've made a potent Big Three on the shores of Lake Erie. It would've been, well, eerie, too: Artest's internal combustion engine, combined with LeBron's exquisite dominance and Shaq's alpha-male, all-round Shaq-ness would've been something to see.

But Artest said talks with Cleveland "never got that far." Told that Cleveland, by all accounts, had extreme interest, Artest said, "I don't know how extreme. I love the Cleveland Cavaliers, though. I love LeBron and Coach (Mike) Brown and Shaq."

But what he really loves is L.A.

"L.A. is what it is," Artest said. "I've been here for the whole summer, and it's pretty good. It's good for me. I know Lamar Odom, so that's pretty cool."

Artest spoke as though Odom would return to the Lakers to join Artest and Kobe Bryant for another title run. The addition of Artest would mean the Lakers have to choose between Odom and Trevor Ariza. Obviously, Ariza would be the odd man out and already has expressed displeasure with the Lakers' efforts to lure him back with only the mid-level exception.

UPDATE: The addition of Artest is a coup for the defending champion Lakers, who have faced the prospect of trying to retain their own free agents, Odom and Ariza, and have seen other contenders make major efforts to improve. Most notably, the Celtics dispatched their Big Three of Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce, along with coach Doc Rivers and managing partner Wyc Grousbeck to Detroit on Thursday to offer free agent Rasheed Wallace a mid-level contract. Cleveland's acquisition of Shaq put the Lakers, Celtics, and Magic on notice that the Cavaliers were making a serious push for a title next season. The Cavs' pursuit of Wallace, Artest, and Ariza signaled that they weren't finished after the pre-draft trade for Shaq.

"I talked to Coach Phil, and I was happy to talk to him," Artest said. "Big fan of Coach Phil. My agent talked to Kupchak, and I met with Dr. Buss. I'm very, very excited."

rlucas4137 · 07-02-2009, 09:39 PM

I feel terrible for Yao and Rocket's fans bc they are probably going to have to start over after losing the BEST big man in the game and now they lose a top 20 player in Artest.

If he stays focused and doesn't let LA distract him, LA will be unstoppable.
I mean look at this:

Fisher
Kobe
Artest
Odom/Gasol
Gasol/Bynum

two guys from Queens, yet I still cannot root for them, unless they beat LeBron next yr

I can definitely foresee Cleveland making a hard run for Kidd now and overpaying. And I hope they do bc I'll puke if the Knicks get him

Buzzsaw · 07-02-2009, 09:56 PM

LOL, are you kidding?

And the rich get richer

Thank god one of my teams comes through for me. The Dodgers are looking damn good too.

simijet · 07-03-2009, 12:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Buzzsaw

LOL, are you kidding?

And the rich get richer

Thank god one of my teams comes through for me. The Dodgers are looking damn good too.

Hope you've learned your lesson - stick with the home team!!! Even if they end up sucking, people will cut you some slack because it's the hometown team. I can only imagine the confused reactions people have toward you when they find out your football allegiances: "You're kidding me right - the NEW YORK JETS

?"

Jordy · 07-03-2009, 12:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Buzzsaw

LOL, are you kidding?

And the rich get richer

Thank god one of my teams comes through for me. The Dodgers are looking damn good too.

That's exactly the phrase that came to my mind.

That's what happens when you have competent people running your front office. You don't sign JAG's to ridiculous contracts and then scramble to try and keep, or at least trade and get a good return on, the good young players you actually drafted and developed.

Donnie Walsh inherited a cluster **** mess.

VincenzoTestaverde · 07-03-2009, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jordy

That's exactly the phrase that came to my mind.

That's what happens when you have competent people running your front office. You don't sign JAG's to ridiculous contracts and then scramble to try and keep, or at least trade and get a good return on, the good young players you actually drafted and developed.

Donnie Walsh inherited a cluster **** mess.

And he's done a great job getting the team under the cap. Once upon a time in the mid-90's the Lakers were a JAG team that couldn'teven get past the first round. Jerry West got them under the cap so they could sign Shaq from Orlando and they traded Vlade Divac to the Hornets for a rookie named Kobe Bryant.

Knicks aren't going to get a Kobe Bryant in the draft but they are going to get under the cap and buy a couple superstars which is all you need in the nba.

Jordy · 07-03-2009, 05:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VincenzoTestaverde

And he's done a great job getting the team under the cap. Once upon a time in the mid-90's the Lakers were a JAG team that couldn'teven get past the first round. Jerry West got them under the cap so they could sign Shaq from Orlando and they traded Vlade Divac to the Hornets for a rookie named Kobe Bryant.

Knicks aren't going to get a Kobe Bryant in the draft but they are going to get under the cap and buy a couple superstars which is all you need in the nba.

But it will really burn me to see them lose either Lee or Robinson with little or nothing in return. Because it will primarliy be due to their inability to maneuver.

VincenzoTestaverde · 07-03-2009, 06:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jordy

But it will really burn me to see them lose either Lee or Robinson with little or nothing in return. Because it will primarliy be due to their inability to maneuver.

Robinson won't be much of a loss. He's a severely under-sized shooting guard. Good steals guy but he can't defend on the ball due to his lack of size and he plays too on offense wild to be a PG. Let some other team overpay for him.

Most likely the Knicks will keep Lee. Not alot of teams are under the cap and the ones that are like Detroit already spent their money or are waiting until next summer. Knicks are going to need to resign Lee so they can use him as trade bait to get Bosh, Amare or Al Jefferson in a sign-and-trade deal next year.

rlucas4137 · 07-03-2009, 06:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jordy

But it will really burn me to see them lose either Lee or Robinson with little or nothing in return. Because it will primarliy be due to their inability to maneuver.

That would be horrible.

Supposedly Toronto is interested in Lee and I assume it would turn into some sort of sign-and-trade w/ Walsh taking back alot of contracts or Bosh.

With nate, I think if they do lose Lee for nothing, Walsh should try to swing a trade with Portland for Rudy Fernandez (disgruntled) and Batum/Outlaw. With them grabbing Hedo, I think it would benefit both teams.

VincenzoTestaverde · 07-03-2009, 06:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rlucas4137

That would be horrible.

Supposedly Toronto is interested in Lee and I assume it would turn into some sort of sign-and-trade w/ Walsh taking back alot of contracts or Bosh.

With nate, I think if they do lose Lee for nothing, Walsh should try to swing a trade with Portland for Rudy Fernandez (disgruntled) and Batum/Outlaw. With them grabbing Hedo, I think it would benefit both teams.

Bosh for Lee is horrible?

rlucas4137 · 07-03-2009, 08:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VincenzoTestaverde

Bosh for Lee is horrible?

Huh? How did you come up with that from what I wrote?

BlueDevilJet29 · 07-03-2009, 11:35 PM

I think Kobe/Artest could be a disaster waiting to happen. There are gonna be a few big personalities on this team with Kobe, Pau and now Artest. I know they're teammates now but Kobe and Artest butted heads in that playoff series. It will be interesting to see...if anyone can manage this it's Phil Jackson.

VincenzoTestaverde · 07-05-2009, 02:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlueDevilJet29

I think Kobe/Artest could be a disaster waiting to happen. There are gonna be a few big personalities on this team with Kobe, Pau and now Artest. I know they're teammates now but Kobe and Artest butted heads in that playoff series. It will be interesting to see...if anyone can manage this it's Phil Jackson.

All they have to do is be civil to eachother and get along. Not an easy task for a crazy roidhead like Ron Artest but if journeys to reality and realizes this is his chance at winning 1 maybe 3 championships maybe he'll wake up.

Lakers now have the best scorer and best defender in the league. Hard to discount that.

Untouchable · 07-07-2009, 02:20 PM

Fisher
Bryant
Artest/Odom
Gasol
Bynum

Wouldn't be surprised at all to see the Lakers repeat as champions. Hell, with that squad, I wouldn't be surprised if they pulled off another three peat.

07-02-2009, 07:19 PM	#1
VincenzoTestaverde laughing at the Pledge Against America Banned Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: NYC Posts: 9,162	Ron Artest Probably Going to the Lakers Lakers are going to be stacked next season. Artest says he's signing with Lakers (UPDATE) Shaq can have LeBron. Ron Artest says he'll take Kobe. Artest, whose versatility and toughness have made him one of the most coveted and combustible players in the NBA, told CBSSports.com Thursday that he's signing with the Lakers. "I'm definitely going to L.A. -- to sign, yeah," Artest said in a phone interview. "Lakers, Lakers, Lakers. I'm in L.A. right now." Artest said he met with Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss Thursday and previously had spoken with Lakers coach Phil Jackson. He was en route to his financial manager's office, where he planned to huddle on the phone with his agent, David Bauman, to finalize details. Artest's exuberance -- he spent the whole summer in L.A., including several appearances at Lakers home games during the NBA Finals -- got ahead of the process a bit. Other teams that made overtures for Artest -- including the Cavaliers -- have not yet been notified that Artest is signing with the Lakers. (Consider them notified.) Bauman has spoken with Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak, but parameters have not yet been agreed to. Still, it's pretty clear where Artest is going. "I don't really care about the money," Artest said. "I'll play there for nothing. ... L.A. was very interested in me, and they got me." UPDATE: Lakers spokesman John Black declined to comment on Artest's assertion, but another person with knowledge of the situation corroborated Artest's account that he will sign with L.A. pending the financial parameters being finalized. Only 24 hours earlier, the buzz was focused on Artest joining LeBron James and Shaquille O'Neal in Cleveland in what would've made a potent Big Three on the shores of Lake Erie. It would've been, well, eerie, too: Artest's internal combustion engine, combined with LeBron's exquisite dominance and Shaq's alpha-male, all-round Shaq-ness would've been something to see. But Artest said talks with Cleveland "never got that far." Told that Cleveland, by all accounts, had extreme interest, Artest said, "I don't know how extreme. I love the Cleveland Cavaliers, though. I love LeBron and Coach (Mike) Brown and Shaq." But what he really loves is L.A. "L.A. is what it is," Artest said. "I've been here for the whole summer, and it's pretty good. It's good for me. I know Lamar Odom, so that's pretty cool." Artest spoke as though Odom would return to the Lakers to join Artest and Kobe Bryant for another title run. The addition of Artest would mean the Lakers have to choose between Odom and Trevor Ariza. Obviously, Ariza would be the odd man out and already has expressed displeasure with the Lakers' efforts to lure him back with only the mid-level exception. UPDATE: The addition of Artest is a coup for the defending champion Lakers, who have faced the prospect of trying to retain their own free agents, Odom and Ariza, and have seen other contenders make major efforts to improve. Most notably, the Celtics dispatched their Big Three of Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce, along with coach Doc Rivers and managing partner Wyc Grousbeck to Detroit on Thursday to offer free agent Rasheed Wallace a mid-level contract. Cleveland's acquisition of Shaq put the Lakers, Celtics, and Magic on notice that the Cavaliers were making a serious push for a title next season. The Cavs' pursuit of Wallace, Artest, and Ariza signaled that they weren't finished after the pre-draft trade for Shaq. "I talked to Coach Phil, and I was happy to talk to him," Artest said. "Big fan of Coach Phil. My agent talked to Kupchak, and I met with Dr. Buss. I'm very, very excited."

07-02-2009, 09:39 PM	#2
rlucas4137 Practice Squad Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Queens, NY Posts: 457	I feel terrible for Yao and Rocket's fans bc they are probably going to have to start over after losing the BEST big man in the game and now they lose a top 20 player in Artest. If he stays focused and doesn't let LA distract him, LA will be unstoppable. I mean look at this: Fisher Kobe Artest Odom/Gasol Gasol/Bynum two guys from Queens, yet I still cannot root for them, unless they beat LeBron next yr I can definitely foresee Cleveland making a hard run for Kidd now and overpaying. And I hope they do bc I'll puke if the Knicks get him

07-02-2009, 09:56 PM	#3
Buzzsaw Jets Insider VIP Board Moderator Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 26,307	LOL, are you kidding? And the rich get richer Thank god one of my teams comes through for me. The Dodgers are looking damn good too.

07-03-2009, 11:35 PM	#12
BlueDevilJet29 Veteran Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 1,187	I think Kobe/Artest could be a disaster waiting to happen. There are gonna be a few big personalities on this team with Kobe, Pau and now Artest. I know they're teammates now but Kobe and Artest butted heads in that playoff series. It will be interesting to see...if anyone can manage this it's Phil Jackson.

07-07-2009, 02:20 PM	#14
Untouchable Hall Of Fame Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 22,409	Fisher Bryant Artest/Odom Gasol Bynum Wouldn't be surprised at all to see the Lakers repeat as champions. Hell, with that squad, I wouldn't be surprised if they pulled off another three peat.