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Bird: Artest not on the trade block
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Pacers forward still contends he missed practice, flight because of migraine headache.
 By Mark Montieth September 24, 2004 Ron Artest and Indiana Pacers team president Larry Bird appear to have much in common as they prepare for their second season together. They agree that Artest made some mistakes during his first extended playoff run last season. They also seem to agree on his value to the Pacers and the unlikelihood of a trade. While Artest's status has been the subject of much speculation, he appears to be on solid ground heading into training camp Oct. 5. Bird, while refusing to rule out the possibility of anyone being traded, said Thursday he is not actively seeking a deal involving Artest. "If you trade Ron Artest, you better get a helluva player back," Bird said. "I'm not going to sit here and tell you we're not going to trade any of our guys because that's not the nature of our business. Anybody can be traded. But I think he's one of the top 10 players in the league. You better get one of the top 10 players back if it fills a need." Bird and Artest said they have talked this summer, but not about a trade. Artest is coming off a busy summer in which he parted company with agent Mark Bartelstein; signed a contract with LA Gear for a shoe and clothing line that he designed; filmed three league-related commercial spots; produced a recording for his three-girl group, Allure, which will be released Nov. 23; and completed a recording of 13 of his rap songs that will become available on the Internet later this year. He also organized a charity basketball event in his hometown of Queensbridge, N.Y., of which highlights were shown on NBA TV, lectured at the Five-Star basketball camp near Pittsburgh, and roamed the country in search of pickup games. Now the 24-year-old forward is back working out at Conseco Fieldhouse each morning, and on Wednesday he began participating in afternoon pickup games with the IUPUI men's team. Artest is coming off a breakthrough season that ended in frustration and controversy. He averaged 18.3 points a game in the regular season but lost his touch against Detroit in the Eastern Conference finals, averaging 14.5 points. Artest also missed practice time and the team charter flight to Detroit for Game 6 because of what he said was a migraine headache. He was called for a flagrant foul in the waning moments of the final game. He accepts blame for the series loss and considers it a learning experience. Among his regrets is not standing up to Rasheed Wallace's guarantee of a victory before Game 2, a pledge the Pistons backed with a victory at Conseco Fieldhouse. "It's so hard to get there and you have to give it your undivided attention," he said. "That's something I have to get better at this season. "I let the hype get to me a little bit." Artest downplayed reports that personal issues were a distraction during the Pistons series and reiterated he did have a migraine. Still, he regrets skipping practice and the team flight. "I should have fought through it," he said. "To win a championship, you have to be at the shootarounds, you have to be attentive, you have to have energy in practice and the games. You have to be perfect, you know? "I was trying to get as much rest as possible, but it worked against us. The extra sleep helped me out a lot. But it didn't help the team. It's better to do what helps the team." Bird acknowledged distractions related to Artest, but he said the fifth-year pro wasn't alone in struggling to handle the pressure of a playoff run. "There's a lot of things that went on, not just Ronnie," Bird said. "You have to stay focused. These guys have never been that far, other than Reggie (Miller) and a few others. We had our problems with Ronnie, but every year it seems he's getting better. "Ronnie's a great guy. If we can calm him down a little bit, he'll be fine. He gets frustrated, but everybody does. The only thing keeping him from being one of the top five players in the game is himself." 'I love my game' Artest, who was voted the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year and played in his first All-Star game last season, raised eyebrows in a recent interview with Slam Magazine in which he said he should have been a contender for the league's Most Valuable Player award because he was the "best player" on the team with the best record. While that could be interpreted as a slight to Jermaine O'Neal, who finished third in the MVP balloting, Artest said he did not intend for it to sound that way. He also said O'Neal should have been voted MVP last season. "It's not an insult," he said. "I'm a competitor. First of all, if I'm playing with Jermaine, I'm not going to show up Jermaine. I'm not going to not pass him the ball. But I always feel if I get the ball every time I'm going to average 30 and we're going to win. It's that simple. I can average a lot of assists, too. That's how I feel about my game. I love my game, but I want to get better. I'm not satisfied." Although Artest said, "I feel I'm the best in the league," he acknowledged there are players he would trade himself for if he were running the franchise. "I think if you can make your team better, you do it," he said. "If I'm in charge and I have a chance to get a better player, I'm going to get the better player." Bird agrees. But he doesn't see many better than Artest. "You ask any of these guys: 'How good do you think Ronnie is?' " Bird said. "I asked Austin (Croshere) after the season and he said, 'Oh, God, he's unbelievable.' "He plays a different game than most people are used to seeing. That's why he's so effective. He can do so many things." |
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