Last Wednesday night Indiana Pacers forward Ron Artest and reigning NBA defensive player of the year did not play in his team's embarrassing 102-68 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. It was the second straight game he was left out of the lineup. Before and after the game, coach Rick Carlisle had refused to answer questions as to the reason behind the benching, and many popular media outlets, accustomed to Artest's "bad boy" image, simply assumed he was being punished again and leveled all manner of accusations at him.
Before the game tonight, Artest held a press conference where he revealed the reasons behind the benching. Surprising everyone, he announced that the punishment had not been handed down from above, but that he had actually requested up to a month off. His reasoning? A strenuous off-season involving heavy promotion of his upcoming rap album. He further fanned the fire by explaining himself by stating that The Pacers "probably expected more; expected me to play every game." When further questioned about his feelings on the benching, he repeated, "It was a good decision. I need the rest."
When being questioned by the media about coach Rick Carlisle's comment that Artest's actions "compromised the integrity of the team," Artest responded that he didn't even know what that meant, and someone would have to explain it to him. While I hope that was a joke, it still shows he doesn't understand the gravity of the situation. Artest's Pacers were 4-0 going into Wednesday night's game. There is no reason they should've lost to the Clippers at home, and there is even less of a reason for Artest to look at results like that and proclaim "There wasn't that much harm done." Ron, your team lost a game it should not have lost, and it lost primarily because the Pacers played no defense, something you're rumored to be pretty good at.
Artest said pretty plainly, "As a man, you gotta be able to do what you want to do. I'm a grown man, I'm going to do what I want to do." The concept of responsibility clearly hasn't entered his mind. What he fails to realize is that his actions have consequences to people other than him, and more importantly, he does have to fulfill a contract he signed to play basketball. As a man, you do not always get to do what you want to do. You have to take care of your obligations first, and he doesn't understand that. Several other athletes have musical careers without creating problems like this, including Jose Lima, Jack McDowell, and Barry Zito. Shaq has released 5 albums, and one of them went Gold. The important thing, however, is that Shaq has worked on all of his in the offseason.
Unfortunately, Artest is just one of a number of professional sports players who have recently proven to the public that they no longer care about their team. Other, less flagrant, offenses in recent years include Bruce Smith's pursuit of the NFL sack record mattering more than winning games for the Redskins, Alex Rodriguez's description of the Texas Rangers as "me and 24 kids," and Randy Moss insistence on playing through an injury to preserve his streak of consecutive games started, when 2 weeks off would've had him playing back at full strength. Ricky Williams decided at the beginning of the year that he would rather continue his drug based lifestyle than fulfill his commitment to his team, and left the Dolphins in the lurch. Now that they want their money back, all of a sudden he feels a love for the game again.
The public is tired of hearing professional athletes complain about the strenuous and tough lives they live, because those articles are flanked in the newspaper by others talking about record setting deals to pay these individuals more over one year than most fans will see in a lifetime. Last week, NBA Commissioner David Stern spoke out regarding a situation with Latrell Sprewell, where he called a $30 million dollar deal over three years "insulting," claiming "I've got my family to feed." These statements are ringing hollow with fans who are actually struggling to put food on the table, and even those fans who are financially secure. Who wants to hear a millionaire complain about not making enough money?
In a way, it's a shame that the St. Louis Cardinals didn't win the World Series this year. Tony LaRussa had claimed multiple times that if the Cardinals took home the championship, he'd manage the team for free next year. As nice as it was to see the curse broken, I'd like to have seen someone stand up for a team they believed in, instead of just standing up for themselves. Ron Artest has no concept of being a member of a team. The Pacers barely squeaked by the Timberwolves in the first game he sat out, and they were demolished by a significantly weaker Clippers team in the second. Had he been playing with the team, the outcome of the games might've been a little different. You didn't see him deciding to play after all once the game turned out to be a little difficult. All he proved was that his teammates cannot rely on him if its not in his best interest to be there, and that is probably a lesson they should all take to heart.
Jeff McAleer is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences.
