First things first, there's this: Geoff Petrie still has to be satisfied.
Any deal involving Ron Artest - and all signs point to trade talks heating up - has to come with enough to make Petrie want to pull the trigger. He can still hold out, perhaps holding onto Artest until season's end and trying to do a sign-and-trade in the summer as a way of getting something back. And even if that didn't happen, you get $7.4 million off the cap and move forward. Not ideal, but neither are some of the offers he's heard for Artest in the past.
While I spent quite a bit of time wondering in print about Nene being part of an Artest-to-Denver deal, there are other pieces there too. There's the expiring contract of bruiser Eduardo Najera ($4.95 million), the revived and likely unattainable center Marcus Camby ($10 million this season and signed through 2010), and young talents like small forward Linas Kleiza ($1.01 million this season, team option for 2008-09 at $1.82 million).
Artest to Denver fits for another reason, too, that being the notion that he would be best suited in an environment with an established coach and surrounded by big-time stars. That was much of the reason Pat Riley has pondered the idea in Miami, where Shaq and D-Wade could create quite the trio with Artest. And it works in Denver, too, where coach George Karl has had a smooth run since getting the once-difficult Allen Iverson and worked past so many Carmelo Anthony moments.
The biggest difference here is that Miami (9-35, last place in the East) is a lost cause while Denver (27-18, 7th place in the West) could badly use another potent piece to ensure playoff position.
Artest's teammates didn't know what to think about his statements to the Bee's Marty Mac about not seeing a long-term future in Sacramento. Swingman Francisco Garcia was nothing short of shocked to hear what Artest had to say.
"That’s my man," he said. "He brings so much to the table for us. He’s a great player. I don’t know what’s going on behind closed doors, (but) if he leaves, it’s going to be tough because he’s also a great friend. But we understand that it’s a business. People go, people come."
Garcia and center Brad Miller were asked if Artest's moments of frustration that have been frequent of late were hurting the team, or if his teammates have grown to live with those occasional outbursts.
"I think everybody got used to it," he said. "He’s just so competitive, just wants to win. Sometimes people get mad at him, but he just wants to win."
Miller, who laughed at the notion that he's the resident Ron-Ron expert because of their prior experience together in Indiana, said he still never knows what to expect from Artest.
"You can’t read him," he said. "You never know what he’s going to say one day. There’s no reading Ron. That’s for sure."
Petrie wouldn't share the exact details of his two recent conversations with Artest, although it seemed clear that it involved the probability that he'll be discussed in trades in the coming days and weeks.
"I’m not going to go into the details of what we talked about necessarily, but I’ve always been very straight forward with Ron and that’s the way it is with anyone," he said. - Sam Amick
News, observations and reader questions about the Sacramento Kings and the NBA.
January 31, 2008
What You Should Know About Comments on Sacbee.com
Sacbee.com is happy to provide a forum for reader interaction, discussion, feedback and reaction to our stories. However, we reserve the right to delete inappropriate comments or ban users who can't play nice. (See our full terms of service here.)
Here are some rules of the road:
• Keep your comments civil. Don't insult one another or the subjects of our articles. If you think a comment violates our guidelines click the "report abuse" button to notify the moderators. Responding to the comment will only encourage bad behavior.
• Don't use profanities, vulgarities or hate speech. This is a general interest news site. Sometimes, there are children present. Don't say anything in a way you wouldn't want your own child to hear.
• Do not attack other users; focus your comments on issues, not individuals.
• Stay on topic. Only post comments relevant to the article at hand. If you want to discuss an issue with a specific user, click on his profile name and send him a direct message.
• Do not copy and paste outside material into the comment box.
• Don't repeat the same comment over and over. We heard you the first time.
• Do not use the commenting system for advertising. That's spam and it isn't allowed.
• Don't use all capital letters. That's akin to yelling and not appreciated by the audience.
You should also know that The Sacramento Bee does not screen comments before they are posted. You are more likely to see inappropriate comments before our staff does, so we ask that you click the "report abuse" button to submit those comments for moderator review. You also may notify us via email at feedback@sacbee.com. Note the headline on which the comment is made and tell us the profile name of the user who made the comment. Remember, comment moderation is subjective. You may find some material objectionable that we won't and vice versa.
If you submit a comment, the user name of your account will appear along with it. Users cannot remove their own comments once they have submitted them, but you may ask our staff to retract one of your comments by sending an email to feedback@sacbee.com. Again, make sure you note the headline on which the comment is made and tell us your profile name.
About Comments
Reader comments on Sacbee.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Sacramento Bee. If you see an objectionable comment, click the "report abuse" button below it. We will delete comments containing inappropriate links, obscenities, hate speech, and personal attacks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. See more about comments here.