The Captain
11-12-2004, 04:49 AM
As NBA fans may or may not be aware, a few days ago, Ron Artest of the Indiana Pacers asked to take a month off from his team because he was tired after promoting an R&B album due out later in the month. Mind you, this was only two or three games into the season and was right after training camp, so claiming to be "tired" seems completely out of the question. The coach of the Pacers rejected this plea and benched Artest for two games for his troubles.
Today, Artest claims that the Pacers can count on him and also, that if the Pacers win the title this year, he'll more than likely retire to fully devote himself to his music.
Now, the questions surrounding this are many, but for the sake of this thread:
1. Can the Pacers still trust Artest, or should they trade him if they can?
2. Was a two game benching punishment enough, or was it not enough? Or, was it too much and do you side with Artest on this?
Finally,
3. What is happening in the world of sports, where athletes seem to have become detached from reality?
Where a player can suddenly retire from the NFL (Ricky Williams), because he doesn't want to play anymore, only to attempt to come back when he is told he must repay all the money of his contract; when Latrell Sprewell claims that a $10 million dollar contract is not even enough to feed his family, then claims he's not interested in helping the T-Wolves because they haven't "Done anything for him lately"; and where an incident like this occurs?
Are all of these players unaware that they have some responsibility for their actions and words?
In the Artest case, I believe, as others have stated today, that this is a bigger problem than just lack of responsibility or maturity, but is rather a deeper problem that would probably be best helped if Artest gets some form of counseling as his erratic behavior has become almost commonplace.
What's your take?
Take care all.
Today, Artest claims that the Pacers can count on him and also, that if the Pacers win the title this year, he'll more than likely retire to fully devote himself to his music.
Now, the questions surrounding this are many, but for the sake of this thread:
1. Can the Pacers still trust Artest, or should they trade him if they can?
2. Was a two game benching punishment enough, or was it not enough? Or, was it too much and do you side with Artest on this?
Finally,
3. What is happening in the world of sports, where athletes seem to have become detached from reality?
Where a player can suddenly retire from the NFL (Ricky Williams), because he doesn't want to play anymore, only to attempt to come back when he is told he must repay all the money of his contract; when Latrell Sprewell claims that a $10 million dollar contract is not even enough to feed his family, then claims he's not interested in helping the T-Wolves because they haven't "Done anything for him lately"; and where an incident like this occurs?
Are all of these players unaware that they have some responsibility for their actions and words?
In the Artest case, I believe, as others have stated today, that this is a bigger problem than just lack of responsibility or maturity, but is rather a deeper problem that would probably be best helped if Artest gets some form of counseling as his erratic behavior has become almost commonplace.
What's your take?
Take care all.