<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/W5FfJ89rGPc&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/W5FfJ89rGPc&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object> That should be the theme song next year if Artest doesn't calm down, we can't blame him for being mad because it would be a slap to the face being not welcomed by 1 of the franchise players but then that it's just Yao Ming who is kinder than most of the NBA.
who's to say that the people he got into fights with at those bars didn't provoke him? as far as the spitting incident goes, barkley has said numerously that that's his biggest regret ever. didn't he mean to spit at an guy and miss and accientally hit the kid anyway?
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/steve_aschburner/08/01/artest.yao.notes/ Yao right to question Artest who has to prove himself to Rockets It's either a tribute to the security preparations for the 2008 Summer Olympics or a reminder of the NBA's soap-operatic tendencies that basketball's next international incident likely will occur not in Beijing but in Houston. Ron Artest and Yao Ming, at some point in the next two months, will step onto a court together as new Rockets teammates and, no doubt, get pushed into each other's personal space by the crowds closing in around them. These are players who speak, self-appointedly or not, for vast constituencies well beyond their individual voices; Yao is the NBA's biggest, most recognizable international player with a vast global fan base, while Artest represents (his words) "the ghetto'' as well as the sanctity of manhood. No wonder the hardwood rectangle beneath them has gotten so small, so swiftly, long before they even break a sweat. Or show up in the same gym. The initial flare-up in the new Houston colleagues' relationship came Wednesday all the way from China, when Yao shared his thoughts on the Rockets' trade for Artest. He made a reference to a Houston Chronicle reporter about the November 2004 melee with Pistons fans that led to Artest's 73-game suspension and said he wondered how the Rockets' chemistry and attitude might be altered. Artest introduced the culture clash in his response to the Sacramento Bee, saying, "I understand what Yao said, but I'm still ghetto. ... I'm never going to change my culture. Yao has played with a lot of black players, but I don't think he's ever played with a black player that really represents his culture as much as I represent my culture.'' A day later, Artest and Yao spoke by telephone, pushing a reset button that probably will need to be hit a few times during the season. "Yao reached out,'' the talented and erratic Artest said. "He said some real nice things. I really appreciate it. It was nice of him.'' Fine. Because, let's face it, the only culture that matters to the Rockets in this move is winning. The culture that matters most to the NBA, in Houston and elsewhere, is profits. Everything else is gravy. Or duck sauce, depending on your cuisine. Yao was well within his rights to stake out the fans' point of view on Artest, whose reputation is entirely earned and absolutely current. His questionable shot selection, some other spotty on-court decisions, his provocative comments and behavior, and his embrace of the media as the World According to Ron-Ron's first draft of history still are issues, nearly four years removed from the ugliness at The Palace of Auburn Hills. If the worst that Artest faces these days from an incident that could have torpedoed his career is an off-hand remark from another player, he ought to be grateful. In fact, Yao's wondering aloud about Artest, then making peace with him a day or two later, provides a primer, and nice spin, for casual Houston NBA fans. It's a nifty follow-the-leader strategy, with Yao again as the emerging leader on a team in need of one. Besides, everything that Artest gets questioned about or criticized for, he made fair game himself. It is no more out of bounds than if Artest were to question Yao's durability or wonder about Tracy McGrady's history of first-round eliminations. No one -- not Yao to the reporter, not Luis Scola in his text messages to Yao -- has said anything that everyone wasn't already thinking. If Artest can focus his energies on disrupting opponents rather than the Rockets, if he can stash that "disrespecting me'' chip in a drawer at home, he has a chance to simultaneously stiffen his new team and refurbish his reputation. If, on the other hand, Artest persists (with his fourth NBA team now) in pressing Play on an endless loop of I've Gotta Be Me -- close your eyes and imagine the late, great Sammy Davis Jr. singing, "Whether I'm right or whether I'm wrong / Whether I find a place in this world or never belong ...'' -- then Yao will have been right to question the trade.
