To tell Bryant he was going to play for the Lakers. John Ireland, writing for CBS2.com, has the story:
After Kobe Bryant and Ron Artest got into that, “war of words” in March back in Houston, I asked Kobe what he really thought of Artest.
“We’re friends,” Kobe said, “I like him a lot–like his game–always have.”
Then he told me a story that makes today’s news–Artest is supposedly on his way to LA for three years, $18 million–very likely to happen.
Kobe said that after the Lakers lost game six of the ‘08 NBA Finals in Boston by 39 points, he was alone in the shower, just fuming. He heard somebody walk in and assumed it was one of his teammates, or maybe a staff member. Instead, he looked up, and it was Ron Artest (to this day, Kobe has no idea how Artest got into the locker room).
“I want to come help you,” Artest said. “If I can, I’m going to find a way to come to LA and give you the help you need to win a title.”
Kobe didn’t think much of it, especially since Artest still had a year left on his deal with the (Kings), and that the Lakers were returning an entire team that had just won the Western Conference. Plus, players talk like that a lot, and it’s just talk. But it struck Kobe as a nice gesture, especially since he had just been hammered by the Celtics and nobody was saying much of anything. Kobe told me that the perception a lot of people have of Artest is wrong.
“He competes….every night, every play,” Kobe said. “I’ve known him since high school and he’s always been like that.”
(Via TLN)
