Laker Ron Artest goes passive

NBA Obsessed takes you into the hit and run game of NBA Basketball.

Sometimes the NBA can take on a whimsical tone with events going beyond reality causing what we know to be totally false. How else can you explain the sudden disappearance of the volatile aggressive Ron Artest that we all have come to know and love? Still, that is what has happened in La La Laker land, where the milk and honey flow in the form of Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson, and a roof of championship banners.

Ron Artest signed a long term contract for 34 million bucks to play for Phil Jackson’s Lakers and the thought was that Ron would bring some toughness to a lineup that features the ultra talented Bryant and the finesse playing Pau Gasol.

Ron Artest pre-Laker guarding Kobe Bryant

In Phil Jackson’s mind there are still questions about when Ron is going to bring the necessary aggression to the floor to add a weapon that the Lakers will need when they play teams like San Antonio, Orlando, or Boston, in other words, the big boys in the league.

“He still looks like he’s standing around watching the other guys play at times, and he’s not involved as much as I would like him to be involved,” Jackson said after watching Artest play 26 minutes,

14 seconds against the Kings.

Asked if he believed Artest was deferring too much to his teammates, Jackson said, “Yeah, yeah, I think he’s got to find his way in the post and do some things that asserts himself and put pressure on his teammates to get him the ball in the right spots.

“He’s trying to be the right guy and try to fit in and not try to crowd his way in there, but he’s got to do that. I’m going to have to force him to do it.”

Artest admitted his immersion to all things Lakers remains a work in progress. He also said he’s been reluctant to charge into the mix, particularly offensively, because he’s studying the Lakers’ pecking order in their triangle offense.

source

It is quite the opposite of what many of the experts felt would happen. The dynamic that was expected consisted of Phil and Kobe and other veterans attempting to keep Artest in check so that the locker room did not implode and the chemistry that has produced the high level of Laker play would remain.

NBAObsessed has argued before that Ron Artest will be good for the Lakers. See this link.

Some disagree, but Artest good for Lakers

Time will tell.

Image: Zuma Press

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

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As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.