MWPeace Discussion: amnesty? (pg. 203)

Starting to find his niche in the team. Having the bigs out is tough no doubt, but good thing we have Rhino.

The Rock wrote:lmao im gonna make fun of him for blowing that easy dunk and gettin blocked by the rim

man this guy is a great fit to this team wow. I knew he was a good passer but I didn't know he was THIS UNSELFISH. Really opened my eyes.

Think about it - passing to Drew, Kobe, Lamar, Pau or passing to Battier, Scola or passing to Miller ( was he still there? ), Marting, Garcia etc.

Which of the above would you choose to do more?

but still though, he had better teammates in his Indiana days and he still had that reputation for massaging the hell out of the ball and he did sometimes. The dramatic change in attitude in approaching the game is amazing. so far he has followed through on everything he has talked about.

His value will come against elite teams when we will have Ron Artest matched up against guys like Brandon Roy, Lebron James, Paul Pierce, and Melo...

i DEFINITELY appreciate Ron Artest...

The Rock wrote:lmao im gonna make fun of him for blowing that easy dunk and gettin blocked by the rim

ahaha me too! but he definitely made up for that one lol

Ron Ron' getting comfy

Here's a play I saw him make during the Memphis game tonight. The score was 89 to 79 and Artest missed a shot that was pretty easy. The ball was moved up the floor quickly and he hustled back to the defensive end. Right as he gets to the 3-point line he slows up and anticipates that the pass is going to go to the wing. He slows up just enough for the Grizzly making the pass not to see him coming from behind and he steps in to get the steal and throws it ahead to Powell for an easy break-away slam. In the overall scheme of things a hustle play against Memphis won't be remembered, but what I took away from that sequence is that Artest has very, very good court awareness. He had to have that to be able to anticipate that pass.

I did not know how good of a passer he is .... that's a huge upgrade over Ariza who cannot pass the ball to save his life . It will facilitate Kobe , Pau and Drew life in the post as entries passes will be better

“We don’t really know the identity of the team right now,” Artest said. “We’re driving without a license—no identity. We’re like ‘The Bourne Ultimatum.”’

you gotta love that qoute. in other words we don't know how we are doing it but if you put us in a room outnumbered we just kick butt & get the job done no matter what it takes, because you can't stop us.

I told you guys it will take Artest until sometime in Nov. to get into things.

That's all.

The "Rhino" nickname has been heaped on the Clippers' forward Craig Smith since he has injured or nailed several players on his own team. Artest has some finesse that doesn't befit giving him that moniker though he has been described as a "bully ball" player.

Mr. Never A Dull Moment is still integrating himself on the floor with the squad. Hesitant on offense but still his same stalwart self on defense. Off the court has been nothing but entertainment. Further work will be needed when The Spaniard and The Kid come back to the starting lineup. The Socialite is needed to stabilize the second unit.

wcsoldier81 wrote:I did not know how good of a passer he is .... that's a huge upgrade over Ariza who cannot pass the ball to save his life . It will facilitate Kobe , Pau and Drew life in the post as entries passes will be better

^^^^ This!!!! This is what I've been so impressed by as well. I knew that it would be a big difference from Ariza just as you said. Last year's offense with the twin towers never looked that good to me, not just because Bynum was recovering from injury but because no one other than Kobe could actually get the ball into the post. And there were two 7 footers who needed the ball!

Artest is passing better than I ever imagined. He's also a much smarter ball player than I've ever imagined. Of course I loved his defense and I coveted the fact that he was an All Star level two way player at SF. But maybe because of his suspect shot selection, I didn't realize how smart a guy he is. Not that Trevor wasn't. Trevor, too, was such a smart, opportunistic player especially on D. But it's great to see Ron a part of this team and very concerned about being a passer in an offense that features passing so prominently.

Ron's a heck of a fit. I knew he would be. I have wanted him here since he was first traded from Indy as so many other fans have. But now that he's here I see his passing is at a higher level than I knew, and he's got great intelligence. I was amazed at what a well spoken and thoughtful guy he is from his signing interviews and since. I always admired his intensity (as in the words of Tenacious D!), hard-nosed D and ability to create offense, but his passing and rebounding and his high intelligence are gifts that really make him fit extremely well with this team and Phil's system.

anyone have his postgame interview from last night? link?

Steal and great full court pass:

Ron can do this every night, unlike some of our players who tend to get timid and/or lose focus every other game.

IMHO, the biggest contributions that Artest makes to the Lakers is twofold: one, the freedom that he brings to kobe's game when they are on the floor together (mainly, he Ds up on guys that previously would have been guarded by KB, and he demands that the opposing SF guards Artest and NOT Kobe), and the fact that he can be left on the floor with a lineup of subs, and can effectively be the 1st option on O, and guard the 2, 3 or 4 on D. Amazing.

Go Lakers!

LakerFlyer wrote:IMHO, the biggest contributions that Artest makes to the Lakers is twofold: one, the freedom that he brings to kobe's game when they are on the floor together (mainly, he Ds up on guys that previously would have been guarded by KB, and he demands that the opposing SF guards Artest and NOT Kobe), and the fact that he can be left on the floor with a lineup of subs, and can effectively be the 1st option on O, and guard the 2, 3 or 4 on D. Amazing.

Go Lakers!

^^^ Very true. While Ariza was a fantastic off ball/team defender - he really wasn't the best man on defender. That's where Artest shines. He's just so daunting out there on that end of the court. Having him guard guys like Lebronze, Pierce and Carmelo will be so important come playoffs, and in the meantime it means that Kobe won't get worn out this season.

And like you said, he's just as classic a two-way player as you will ever find. It makes him invaluable. He is always a threat to score and he's a former DPOY. That combination makes him the perfect complimentary player to Kobe who is also a hell of a defender.

Ron looks like another Pippen in making. If he can fit in the role as a pointv forward successfully, he can free Kobe from the ball and allow Kobe to break the defense also with off-ball movement. With Kobe's knowledge and experience, it will make Lakers' offense even more unstoppable.

The man is exactly what the team needs and what Kobe has been missing all these years since Snaq left: a forward that can handle the ball, take over when he's on the bench, and of course the TOUGHNESS that he brings every night. I'm glad this man is finally on Kobe's side after all the failed attempts to get him here.

I also admire how he's kept himself in control so far this season, and how he's letting the offense come to him. The play on the defensive end is just simply amazing!

KEEP IT UP RON!

sina wrote:Ron looks like another Pippen in making. If he can fit in the role as a pointv forward successfully, he can free Kobe from the ball and allow Kobe to break the defense also with off-ball movement. With Kobe's knowledge and experience, it will make Lakers' offense even more unstoppable.

exactly what i was thinking yesterday while watching the game. Ron is like Pippen in sense. He'll guard the teams best player. He can be depended on to provide 15-17 a game and he has above average handles. He's a tough customer.


The only thing i dislike right now about Artest right now is when he's posting up, he needs to finish those shots close to the rim. When he makes his move he cant finish when its clearly a easy layup

^ thanks

i loled when they showed him eating an apple on the bench before the game