[New York Times] Rockets' New Glare

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/26/sports/basketball/26nba.html

Rockets' New Glare
By HOWARD BECK
Published: October 25, 2008

HOUSTON — In nine turbulent seasons of professional basketball, Ron Artest has exhausted the dark corners of the emotional spectrum. He has inspired fear, anger, revulsion, anxiety and, in his worst moment, malice. The feelings in southeast Texas right now are considerably warmer and fuzzier.

Houston Rockets fans have flocked to Artest in a virtual group hug. Daryl Morey, the Rockets' bookish general manager, is nearly giddy over his arrival. And Tracy McGrady, the star guard with the tear-stained playoff résumé, was struck with the most unlikely emotion of all.

"It was a sense of relief," he said of the August trade for Artest.

If the pairing of "relief" and "Artest" in the same sentence is jarring, then consider an even more mind-blowing construction: Artest as the missing piece to an N.B.A. championship.

As the Boston Celtics open their first title defense in 22 years and the Los Angeles Lakers renew their drive to unseat them, the N.B.A.'s most compelling drama will unfold in Houston, where the Rockets promise to be explosive and entertaining, one way or another.

With Artest, an elite defender and gifted scorer, joining the All-Stars McGrady and Yao Ming, the Rockets have a talented threesome to rival the Lakers' (Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom), the San Antonio Spurs' (Tim Duncan, Manu Ginóbili, Tony Parker) and perhaps even the Celtics' (Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen).

Oddsmakers list the Rockets as an 8-to-1 shot to win the title, putting them in the same class as the Spurs and the Detroit Pistons. In the N.B.A.'s annual survey of general managers, the Rockets got as many votes as the Spurs to win the championship. Jeff Van Gundy, the ESPN analyst and former Houston coach, called the Rockets and the Lakers "the two most talented teams in the Western Conference, by far."

The Rockets are too respectful of the established powers to make bold predictions. But when Morey acquired Artest from Sacramento — for the veteran Bobby Jackson and the rookie Donte Greene — the goal was clear. He expects the Rockets, who have not won a playoff series since 1997, to contend immediately.

"I think that's fair," said Morey, using more caution in his rhetoric than in his deal-making. "We're clearly making the moves hoping that's the case."

As N.B.A. deals go, it was the ultimate high-risk, high-reward gambit. Artest is an elite two-way player, capable of scoring in bunches and locking down All-Stars. He is also capable of destroying his team.

Four years ago, while playing for the Indiana Pacers, Artest sparked the worst player-fan brawl in league history at the Palace in Auburn Hills, Mich. Artest was suspended for 73 games and the Pacers, who had been contenders in the East, fell into disarray. They traded Artest to Sacramento 14 months later.

There have been other smaller incidents — a smashed TV camera, a domestic abuse charge, dozens of technical fouls, wild comments to the news media — but it is the brawl that forever stains Artest's reputation.

Although he avoided any serious on-court problems in two and a half seasons with the Kings, Artest left Sacramento amid rumblings that he had worn out coaches and teammates with his emotional volatility. Artest has a low tolerance for players he deems to be lazy or lacking talent. He was known to act up in the locker room even after preseason games.

The trade was viewed in Sacramento as addition by subtraction — an interpretation supported by the modest package the Kings received in return.

"He's just an emotional guy," said Kings center Brad Miller, who was also Artest's teammate in Chicago and Indiana. "That's his strong point and sometimes the weakness. But it's a fine balance."

If any team can handle the entire Artest spectrum, it is the Rockets. They are coached by Rick Adelman, a steady, underrated manager of outsize personalities. Artest was devastated when the Kings fired Adelman in 2006, and thrilled to be reunited with him in Texas.

"One of the best coaches I ever played for," said Artest, who reportedly had little regard for the two rookie coaches who followed Adelman in Sacramento, Eric Musselman and Reggie Theus.

With the rebuilding Kings, Artest was forced to carry a heavy load at both ends of the court. But he was ill suited as the face of a franchise.

If the oft-injured Yao and McGrady can stay healthy, they will provide Artest cover, and keep his ego in check. It mirrors the role Artest played during his early years with Indiana, supporting Reggie Miller and Jermaine O'Neal. "Ronnie's best years with us were when he was the third guy," said Donnie Walsh, the former Pacers president, who now runs the Knicks.

Although Artest wrecked the team he built, Walsh still speaks of him fondly, and even roots for him.

"I would love to see him in a position publicly where the good side of him could be seen," Walsh said. "Because it hasn't been seen in a long time. And there's a great side to Ron."

The Rockets are also providing Artest with a support system. They recently hired Shawn Respert, a former N.B.A. player, as director of player programs. Artest is among his chief responsibilities.

"He's a volatile guy," Morey said, "but we feel like we've got as much lined up to mitigate it as any team."

There is one more mitigating factor: Artest is in the final year of his contract and thus should be on his best behavior. If the Rockets crash and burn, they can simply let him walk next summer.

Indeed, Rockets officials insist that the greatest risk associated with the trade was not in acquiring Artest, but in surrendering Greene, a raw, gifted forward who was taken with the 28th pick in the June draft.

"I don't think it's as big a risk as everybody thinks it is," the Rockets' owner, Les Alexander, said, referring to Artest. "I thought Artest was an All-Star-caliber player and that he was now 29, and people mature. They come into the league and after awhile, they realize the one thing they really want out of basketball the most is to win a championship."

Artest has said as much in his conversations with Rockets officials and teammates. He was a model citizen in the preseason, and almost always the last one off the court at practice. He has volunteered to come off the bench when Shane Battier, the incumbent small forward, returns from a foot injury. Significantly, Artest has also become close to Battier, who is among the N.B.A.'s most respected players.

And Artest has tried hard to blend in. He has turned down requests for extensive off-court interviews. When The Houston Chronicle proposed an article on the new Big Three (the Rockets' best since Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler and Charles Barkley), Artest declined.

None of this — and not even a championship — may change the negative images of Artest, and he said he does not expect it to. But Artest said he had evolved since his impetuous early years with the Pacers.

"I was young, I was too immature just to put importance on winning the championship when I was back in Indiana," he said. "I didn't know how important it was to me. I had too many other selfish, individual things going through my mind. And I didn't put no importance on winning the championship. And I have a second shot at it."