Yao Ming Spoke Up On the Artest Trade

[RebelAzn]

Ron Artest recently just got traded to Houston Rockets. If you guys watch basketball, Ron is the guy that went into the stand and brawl with fan 4 years ago. Yao spoke up about potential bad team chemistry with Artest. However, I guess they worked it out with each other.

The good thing is Yao is standing up and taking a leadership role for the Rockets. He wants a championship and Rockets is his team. Now Houston has their own big 3 in Yao, TMAC and Artest.

BTW, I like Ron Artest. I have been following the guy since he played at St. Johns. He is a hot head and he does rub people off sometimes. However, you got to give him some respect for being honest.

Below is their story.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3513504

[Liang]

I'm glad Ron showed understanding. Yao's a good man and didn't mean anything bad with his comment...only that he is worried about team chemistry when a new player with a completely different attitude is coming in.

I personally like the trade. Houston was missing that swagger. With Artest, they should have all the pieces to make a strong postseason run.

[nskripchun]

Ron Artest is talented, definitely. But yeah... he's also a little crazy.

Of course, given the choice of playing against him versus having him on my team... well, shoot... better to have the crazy guy on YOUR side than against you, I say.

[zhangfei]

Artest is overrated. decent defender, below average rebounder, good offensive player but his decision-making, primarily his shot selection, is questionable.

[minorTruths]

I have been a Houston Rockets fan all my life dating back to the mid 80s with Olajuwon. I grew up in Houston. I hate it when people assume I have only been a fan or am only a fan since the addition of Yao Ming to the Rockets. But that's a different topic.

I think the Artest trade is fantastic all the way around. Rockets gave up peanuts for a very good, defensive minded, strong small forward/2 guard who plays with a lot of heart and hustle. His offense is also pretty good. It will be a contract year for Artest which means he will play his best basketball. It's been written...Houston's big three vs. Celtics big three in 09 in the big dance barring any injuries.

I've read stuff on Artest over the years and I think he is misunderstood for the most part. Yes, he's a little fucked up in the head, but aren't we all. Did anyone watch the Artest interview on ESPN's PTI show? He seems to be really excited about the Rockets...and that got me excited.

Regarding Yao's comments, his comments have been naturally sensationalized and blown out of proportion and context by the controversy crazed media. This article from the Houston Chronicle seems to strongly suggest that it was joking reference.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mplkn/5918602.html

Artest appreciates ‘great’ talk with Yao



By JONATHAN FEIGEN Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle

Ron Artest wanted to be judged by actions, not by anything he had said or was about to say. So when asked how he felt about the trade completed just days ago that will send him to the Rockets, he immediately pointed to something he had already done.

“I got my house already,” he said. “About to get settled in and start working out.”

Any wariness that he had Wednesday about Yao Ming’s comments was gone, ended by a conversation with Yao that Artest said “was great.”

Yao had generally praised Artest and the trade, but had said he was concerned about “chemistry” and made a joking reference to the incident when Artest went into the stands after a fan, inspiring Artest to say he would be happy to come to Houston only if Yao and the Rockets demonstrated their commitment to the move.

That all changed Thursday.

“Yao reached out,” Artest said. “He said some real nice things. I really appreciate it. It was nice of him.”

With that, Artest’s mood had returned to the excitement his representative, Mark Stevens, had described in the hours after the deal.

"He's outrageous," Stevens said. "He's happy, he's jumping, he's fantastic right now.

"He is happy as he can be to be put in a situation to compete for a championship. He's ecstatic."

By Thursday, Artest was happy to talk about basketball and joining Tracy McGrady, Rafer Alston and Shane Battier with the Rockets.

“Definitely playing with Tracy, I’ve got a guy that can take over a game,” Artest said. “I got my thing take over a game defensively.

“Rafer, he’s my idol. I grew up watching him. I watched him at Rucker Park. Everybody looks up to Rafer and is proud of Rafer. He grew up in a tough environment, playing street ball and adjusted his game to be a star in the NBA. I not only have admiration for him but I’m happy for him.

“Me and Shane have been playing together for quite some time. Every time we played it’s always a battle. When we first played against each other (15 years ago) Shane used to be way bigger than me. I really admire Shane because Shane at Duke was the star and he’s still playing defense, hitting big 3s and is such important part of the Houston Rockets. That’s why I wouldn’t mind coming off the bench as a sixth man or seventh man.”

Artest said he was excited about the move for reasons ranging from contending for a championship to establishing his foundation, “XL University” in Houston to provide scholarships for Houston students in private schools or heading to college. But he said he did not want to say much.

“My game speaks for myself,” he said. “I’m one of the top thee or four two-way players in the game. I do love to play defense. I got scoring all around me now. I can just contribute.

“I am happy. I’m always happy. I have family, a beautiful wife, four kids. I’m always in good spirits, always happy. I’m blessed. I guess over time you get to know people. The first day is the interesting day. The next days always get better. I don’t want to write a book in newspaper today. We will over time.”