I think most people feel this way because of what he said after game 7 when reporters asked about staying and he emphatically repeated yes several times and said he wanted to grow with our young guys.
If i were Ron I'd sign with the Lakers too... Houston offered him a one year deal and L.A. gave him 4...he always said he wanted Houston, but I don't think Houston felt the same way entirely..
I think he would have re-upped had Yao been healthy. I like Ariza better for the long wrong anyway. Hopefully Battier will take him and turn him into an elite defender. I'm bitter about him leaving, but I can't say I blame him. I'd rather he went to Cleveland though. F LA.
cheered for him while he was here... couldn't care less now that he's gone. I hope he helps the lakers implode.
I hope that the whole time he's a laker, they don't win a championship. It's bad enough they did this year, and I don't know if anyone here goes on facebook, but on Ron's page, someone had the nerve to say that the Nuggets gave the Lakers a harder time than us, the Lakers took us to 7 games, not the other way around. Are the Lakers fans just that stupid?
Couldnt care less about Ronny. He always was a Laker the way he talked about Kobe and played against him. Had he been more interested in winning against them instead of admiring Kobe and joining him maybe we could have beat them?
So basically he's the same player without the defense. The only thing Ron Artest and Scottie Pippen have in common is their height. As far as the comment about dominating in the post - I don't even know what to say. Whatever. People here discredit my skepticism regarding this acquisition as bitterness. It's not. I don't think he sold out going to LA - what happens on the court, stays on the court. I'll miss the charisma and aura he brought to this team. It's funny because every single op-ed piece on this signing operates from the same faulty premises. This article is just the latest in that long line. The risk isn't with regard to chemistry. Ron worships Kobe and has a clear sense of hierarchy. The risk is that Ron just isn't that good anymore. While the low post comments and allusions to Pippen-esque versatility are obviously laughable, people don't realize just how much he has lost defensively or just how inconsistent he can be offensively. They are really losing the dimension that made them unique in releasing Ariza and if they fail to re-sign Odom, you can stick a fork in the LA Lakers. I'm glad Ron realizes that his defense has noticeably slipped. His first task this summer should be losing the 20 lbs. of bulk which he doesn't utilize by posting up. He can fit their offense if he sticks to his strength in spotting up, but if that's the case, wouldn't they have been better off just retaining the younger, more dynamic Ariza? I hope for Ron's sake that they can find a way to keep Odom because the former is going to be unfairly blamed when that team comes up way short on its success from last year.
but that was when everyone had the understanding that the rockets will continue to be contending and not rebuilding.. also assuming that there is no other offer alot better than the rockets'
Yeah, that quote had me at a loss. They couldn't be more different from each other. And Ron's post play was something I expected to see with the Rocks and rarely did. Couldn't agree more about Artest losing some weight. That's the biggest thing, aside from just being older, that affects his defense in a negative way. He's not as quick, and it showed.
ROFLMAO The Rox will painfully realize that without Artest, they're missing his tough on-the-ball defense dimension, one that has never been part of Arriza's defensive repetroire. Arriza will find out soon that, w/o a Kobe on the team, he will not get many open shots from the outside.
If by 'tough on-the ball defense dimension', you are referring to his Pavlovian tendency to lunge at any feigned motion, inevitably leading to a total defensive collapse, then yeah, I'm not sure we will be missing that too much. thankfully. I fail to see how this is at all relevant to my statement that the Lakers will miss Ariza. My premise wasn't in regards to any intrinsic value inherent to Ariza. It was pertaining to his role on the Lakers and seamless fit in playing it. That he won't be as good without Kobe is pretty obvious and really has nothing to do with this discussion. If you want to discuss the expectations for Trevor Ariza on the Rockets next year, feel free to start a thread on that topic and I would be more than happy to engage you.
Ron is not as good as Ron thinks he is.....I doubt the Lakers will repeat, his personality will rub a lot of players in that locker room the wrong way. IMO, the Lakers got a lot worse..... DD
I don't know man. Telling Kobe a year ago that he wants to join the Lakers a whole season before he actually joined is kinda fishy. Houston was just a pit stop for him to reinvent his image. Hey, it worked. Also, I don't think Ron is the sole reason we made the 2nd Round. It was a team effort and he was on our team. The real reason we got there is because we finally put a team together that was more than just one or two guys consistently contributing. Honestly, I was disappointed with Rons performance against the Lakers. When we needed him the most, after Yao went down, he never stepped up. Other than the "altercation" with Kobe, he didn't do much. When your two "Stars" go down, that was where Ron was suppose to shine. I was a huge Ron supporter when we first got him and everyone was saying it was a mistake. I wanted Ron back. Would have welcomed him with open arms. But he joined the Devil. Yeah I know its part of the game but damn, the Lakers?
Ron was the accessible Rocket last year, he was seen around town and many fans have talked to him and he answered all their questions. Remember he tried to get a clutchfans account too. maybe it was an image repairing move or that was just him. I do think Yao going down is a major part of his decision.
Question: If the Rockets offered him 5 years $50MM are there any doubt he'd be in a Rockets uniform right now? We lowballed him, he looked at his options, and decided if he was gonna get below market value in this economy, it would be with the Lakers. But if we offered Ron a contract that are typically given out to players of his caliber, he'd be in a Rockets uniform right now. Rashard Lewis got $120 MM. Look at what Hedo got paid. I'm not happy that Ron signed w/ the Lakers but let's be real, what happened was the best for both parties. It'd be unfair for us to expect Ron at below market value on a lottery team. It'd be unfair to us to pay a guy in the middle of his prime $10MM + on lottery bound team. What happened worked for everyone.
I doubt you'd find a single taker on that bet too. He seems to only like players who punches fans in the stands.
