There is no guarantee that a player will help a team win in the NBA. And sometimes, traded stars end up on teams they didn’t even want to join. This combination can lead to some toxic relationships.
In 2006, Metta Sandiford-Artest, then known as Ron Artest, was traded to the Sacramento Kings by the Indiana Pacers. And he didn’t initially want to be there, revealing what he told Coach Rick Adelman when he got to the Kings.
“So they trade me to Sac,” Artest said on the Byron Scott Podcast. “I get to Sac and I’m 273 pounds and I told Coach Adelman, ‘I really appreciate you giving me a shot. If you could bring me off the bench, maybe not even play me… If we can work something out like that, that would be great.’ Cuz my mind is not in it right now. I kind of want to sneak out of the league. You know? Quietly.”
Artest was coming off the longest suspension for an on-court incident in NBA history due to his involvement with the Malice in the Palace. He demanded a trade from Indiana after being cleared to return, but he didn’t want to go to the Kings. But despite this, it’s what he did after asking to not be played that showed his character.
Metta played 40 games for Sacramento that season after being traded, he averaged 16.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 2.0 steals per game. He was so good, he was selected to the NBA’s All-Defensive First Team. And the Kings made the playoffs in 2006 with him, a feat they wouldn’t repeat till earlier this year in 2023. So how come he changed his mind?
Metta Sandiford-Artest Revealed How He Changed His Mind And Played For The Kings
Modern NBA superstars tend to simply sit out and not play games if they are in a situation they don’t like, Ben Simmons forcing his way out of Philly is a good example of this. But Artest still cared about the team he was traded to, explaining in the same podcast why he ended up performing for the Kings that season after all.
“Coach Adelman said, ‘We gonna go as far as you take us, Ron.’ I said, ‘Coach I don’t got it. I’m 273 pounds, what am I going to give you?’ Meanwhile, we’re in the last place in the West, so the next day I go home and I’m like, ‘Oh wow, this guy really believes in me.’
“I go to the media day the next day and I say, ‘We’re going to the playoffs.’ I get back in shape, we go to the playoffs, we’re like the best in the West in the second half of the season. And I made First Team All-Defense That Year. Which is crazy!”
Coming off a massive suspension and a long and hard road to returning to the court, this showed Artest’s mettle as an NBA great. He would go on to achieve real success in the league some years later when he became a part of the Los Angeles Lakers in 2009 and won a championship alongside Kobe Bryant in his first season. Metta-Sandiford Artest was one of the last of a dying breed, it would seem.
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