INDIANAPOLIS -- Trouble is starting to swirl around the Indiana Pacers, and Ron Artest is right in the middle of it.
The Pacers started the season 14-2, but Saturday night's loss to New Jersey dropped them to 7-8 in their last 15 games. That prompted coach Rick Carlisle to criticize Artest and the team, saying customers "got gypped" by the performance.
Artest was benched the entire second half against the Nets after an uninspired first half and a halftime argument with Carlisle.
Carlisle cited Artest for "conduct detrimental to winning." It was the first sign of dissent from Artest this season after he was suspended for 12 games and fined $155,000 last year.
Artest has been frustrated with Carlisle's structured offense, which calls for set plays on most trips down the floor.
Carlisle was ejected in the third quarter for arguing with the officials and delivered a stern message to Artest and the team after the game.
"We've got some guys here who just don't get it," Carlisle said. "If nothing else, if we don't win a game, it's my job more than anything to make sure that they get it. And they're going to."
Otherwise, he said, players will stay on the bench.
The Pacers were off Sunday and unavailable for comment. A message left at team president Larry Bird's office was not immediately returned.
Among the reasons for Artest's benching was his shot selection. He took three 3-pointers in the first quarter out of the flow of the offense, a move strongly discouraged in Carlisle's scheme.
One of the league's top defenders, he also gave up back-to-back dunks to Kenyon Martin and several times allowed Richard Jefferson a clear path to the basket.
When the Pacers came out for the second half, Artest walked on the floor but was told to sit. He remained on the bench, cheering his teammates, the rest of the game.
Artest's strong, mature play has been one reason the Pacers have spent the entire season in first place in the Eastern Conference. Now he doesn't understand what all the fuss is about.
"He thought something was wrong with me," Artest said. "There's nothing wrong with me. I took three bad shots. Everybody's not going to be perfect all the time. I don't see a problem."
But Carlisle and other players do.
Players embraced Carlisle's offense as the wins piled up early, but doubt has started to creep in.
"The more we run sets, the more teams are scouting and pre-rotating and making it tough for us to score," forward Al Harrington said. "But I think at the end of the day, we're going to have to start playing (Carlisle's way)."
Jermaine O'Neal refused to comment on Artest directly.
"It's not about the X's and O's," O'Neal said. "It doesn't matter who's coaching, there's players out there not playing. Everybody has to be playing, be effective in some type. Everybody has to perform at a high level for us to win."
Carlisle talked about sacrificing personal goals for the good of the team.
"We're a team that, quite frankly, doesn't understand what the word sacrifice means because winning isn't easy," he said. "You've got to want it bad."
Before Saturday night's game, Artest stayed in a private part of the locker room with rap music blasting. He looked uninterested for most of his 13 minutes on the floor.
Artest's actions do not reflect Carlisle's standing with the rest of the team, Harrington said.
"We respect Coach," he said. "We respect everything he's done. We know he has had success in winning. We believe in his system, but at the same time, we believe in our abilities, that we can make good basketball plays without a set being called every time."
QUESTION for the crowd: Considering this and who the president of Knicks is and the state the Knicks are in - is it possible that Queensbridge's own Insane Rottweiler will be coming home to the Orange & Blue?
Personally, I think not. Jim Dolan (who may be more responsible for submarining the Knicks than Layden) tends to like the vanilla yes-man types. Of which Artest certainly is not.
INDIANAPOLIS -- Indiana Pacers forward Ron Artest missed the team's morning shootaround for Monday night's game against the Memphis Grizzlies because he overslept, two nights after being benched during a loss to New Jersey.
Artest was benched for the second half of Saturday night's loss to New Jersey for what coach Rick Carlisle called "conduct detrimental to winning." He called the team Monday morning to tell them he would be late, Carlisle said.
Carlisle said he has scheduled a meeting with Artest for Monday afternoon to talk about the player's behavior and would start Al Harrington in his place against the Memphis Grizzlies.
The coach and player have disagreed about Carlisle's methodical offensive system, which calls for set plays on most trips down the floor. Their differences came to a head against the Nets, when Artest took three 3-pointers out of the flow of the offense in the first quarter.
Artest also gave a lackluster defensive effort and argued with Carlisle at halftime, prompting the coach to bench him for the entire second half.
When asked if missing the shootaround will affect his playing time against the Grizzlies, Carlisle replied, "I would have to say yes, but we'll find out. We have to talk to him to reach a resolution. Does that mean he's not going to play at all? Not necessarily."
Carlisle ripped Artest and the team after the loss to the Nets, saying Artest "compromised what the game is all about."
The coach said he tried to contact Artest on Sunday, calling him on the phone and even stopping by his house and knocking on his door, but Artest was not home.
The recent troubles have been the first for Artest this season after he was suspended for 12 games and fined $155,000 last year. His mature, well-rounded play has been one of the main reasons the Pacers (21-10) have spent the entire season in first place in the East.
But things started to sour after a blowout loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Dec. 20, when Artest called Carlisle's offense "boring." His criticisms continued after losses to the Milwaukee Bucks and the New Jersey Nets.
Carlisle said after the loss to the Nets that he had to make a stand and that "different agendas tend to rear their ugly heads from time to time."
On Monday, he said the distraction is just part of what goes on during a long NBA season.
"You're going to have some tough times," Carlisle said. "I don't mind, because getting through tough times is what makes a good team a better team, so I don't mind these types of challenges. The wrong kinds of distractions generally aren't good, but they're going to have to be overcome with any team at some point. I'd just as soon deal with it now, rather than later."
Not coincidentally, the distraction comes at a time where the Pacers are struggling to get wins. After starting the season 14-2, they're 7-8 and have lost two in a row for the first time this year.
Originally posted by Kawshen QUESTION for the crowd: Considering this and who the president of Knicks is and the state the Knicks are in - is it possible that Queensbridge's own Insane Rottweiler will be coming home to the Orange & Blue?
Personally, I think not. Jim Dolan (who may be more responsible for submarining the Knicks than Layden) tends to like the vanilla yes-man types. Of which Artest certainly is not.
The thing is, if you were the Pacers GM is their anyone on the Knicks you would trade Artest for? Personally, I don't think Artest is going anywhere for a long while.
Believe me, I'm not defending message boards -- they can be evil places
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San Antonio guard Manu Ginobili won his first NBA Sixth Man of the Year award with 123 out of 124 first-place votes, finishing far ahead of last-year's winner, and this year's runner-up, Leandro Barbosa of Phoenix.
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