<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">[imgl]http://cmsimg.indystar.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=BG&Date=20050712&Category=SPORTS04&ArtNo=507120410&Ref=AR&Profile=1004&MaxW=250&Q=80&Border=0[/imgl] He'll have a different number. He plans to have a more mature outlook, too. But there are limits to the changes Ron Artest is willing to make in the wake of his career-altering suspension. "I'm the type of person who reacts," the Indiana Pacers forward said Monday. "I'm ghetto. I'm 'hood -- a 'hood cat. At the same time, I'm learning from my mistakes." Artest, suspended for 73 games and the playoffs last season for going into the stands at the Palace of Auburn Hills after a fan threw a beer on him during a game Nov. 19, met with the local media for the first time since then on Monday. Although he had rejoined the Pacers in practice in January, he had been shielded from local reporters by an agency that represents him. The silent period became impractical after he decided to play on the Pacers' summer league team, so he sat after practice on a training table set up off the main court at Conseco Fieldhouse and answered questions for 231/2 minutes. Artest said he did not undergo counseling or therapy during his suspension, despite indications from NBA commissioner David Stern and others that he was engaging in various forms of self-improvement. "That's not my announcement to make," Pacers CEO Donnie Walsh said when asked about Artest's suspension activities. Regardless, Walsh and Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said they have noticed positive changes in Artest since the suspension. "The things I notice are that he returns phone calls promptly and when you tell him to be somewhere, he's always there," Walsh said. "I think he seems different in a lot of ways," Carlisle added. "In general, he really appreciates what he's able to do for a living."</div> Source
The Media have been hard on Artest in the past. I find his punishment to be over the top considering he did not CAUSE any trouble but rather REACTED to it. Thats not to say that what he did was wrong, but there were other players deserving of a harsher sentence. Well its over and hopefully Artest would have learned from his mistakes.
He deserves a second chance. I think he had some emotional issues, but he's overrall a good guy and hasn't forgot where he came from. I have alot of respect for Artest.
i hope he doesnt lose control again. i think he wont react to many things, lets say someone gets in his face he will be mature about it. i dont think he wants to sit out another season
