Ariza admitted to hearing from LeBron James and Shaquille O'Neal but denied an ESPN report that James had confirmed he planned on staying in Cleveland after he becomes a free agent the summer of 2010.
HOUSTON -- The Houston Rockets were supposed to provide answers during the official introduction of the newly signed free-agent forward Trevor Ariza on Wednesday.
Instead, their behind-the-scenes maneuvering created even more questions.
On the day the Rockets introduced Ariza, a key contributor of the Los Angeles Lakers' championship run, the team admitted it signed the 24-year-old budding star with money from an injury exception granted by the NBA for Yao Ming, who's nursing a broken foot that could keep him sidelined for all of 2009-10.
Michael Jackson will be laid to rest following a star-studded affair at the Staples Center on Tuesday, featuring noted performers such as Mariah Carey, John Mayer, Lionel Richie, Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson. Although I doubt he'll be invited to perform, Ron Artest, who will soon call the Staples Center home once he officially signs with the Lakers on Wednesday, penned a surprisingly catchy tribute song of his own. If you're at work, be wary of the explicit lyrics, and keep reading after the jump to see how else Ron-Ron plans to honor MJ.
There is a reason nothing stays the same in the NBA. It's never good enough -- even at the top.
What the Los Angeles Lakers learned from the previous four NBA champs – Detroit, Miami, San Antonio and Boston -- was that the status quo will just get you beat the next season.
It's why there have been no repeats lately.
By landing Ron Artest to replace Trevor Ariza -- a huge upgrade -- the Lakers did what others before them didn't do. They got better after they won.
The Boston Celtics aligned their three stars and rode them all the way to a NBA championship in 2008.
The Houston Rockets hoped to do the same when they added unpredictable yet talented Ron Artest with their superstar duo of Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming last summer. But a year later, their dream has unraveled.
McGrady and Yao are sidelined with potentially career-threatening injuries and Artest left Thursday in free agency, heading to the world champion Los Angeles Lakers to join forces with Kobe Bryant for a three-year deal.
Bloggers knee-jerking on the phone + roundtable style = RoundCast.
One of the biggest moves of this free agent season went down on Thursday, when it was learned that Ron Artest will be heading to the Lakers. Matt Moore and I break down what is effectively going to be L.A. trading Trevor Ariza for Artest, as it was also announced that Ariza agreed to a deal with the Rockets.
After plenty of Artest talk, we also review some of the other deals that have gone down, and ponder the fates of some other would-be contenders like the Cavaliers, Pistons, Magic, and Celtics.
As we all attempt to grok Ron Artest: Los Angeles Laker, much will (rightfully) be made of the strange relationship Kobe Bryant and our antihero Artest enjoy. Off the court, the stars claim to be best friends. On the floor, there has been some serious (and recent!) bad blood.
But in real basketball results, Pau Gasol might be the most endangered Laker in all of this. Kobe ain't giving up shots to Ron-Ron ... but someone will have to, unless you think Artest -- who has in the past placed himself in the same league as Kobe and LeBron James -- will shave half his offense to become Trevor Ariza II. I sincerely doubt our protagonist will be so generous. So the Laker attacker who requires the ball to be fed -- Pau -- figures to suffer.
If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. That's the mindset that Ron Artest has apparently taken following today's news that he's agreed to join Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles. Artest was instrumental in helping the Rockets take the eventual champion Lakers to seven games during the Western Conference semifinals. Instead of serving as Kobe's antagonist, he'll become Kobe's sidekick.
According to Ken Berger of CBS Sports, Artest met with Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss and spoke with Phil Jackson on Thursday before instructing his agent to get a deal done. Details of the agreement -- both the length and the amount -- are still unknown, but from the sounds of it, Artest isn't about to quibble over the details.
Ron Artest caused a bit of a flurry Wednesday night when he went on his Twitter account and announced he was signing a new deal. Of course it was all a joke/publicity stunt. However, the activity on his twitter account -- particularly the farewell to Houston tweet -- made Artest's agent David Bauman come out and claim that the Twitter account is a fake.
As athletes have been burned by fake accounts before, we have become pretty good at identifying fake Twitter accounts, and it seems Bauman is wrong about the account in question being a fake.
As if Cleveland wasn't already a focal point of the NBA universe, it may be reaching a whole new level of crazy. A brand of crazy NBA fans only know as ... Ron Artest.
The Cleveland Plain Dealerwas the first to report on the possibility, but even coming from super-reliable Brian Windhorst, it was still just your run of the mill free agency rumor; a possibility to keep an eye on.
That was until Artest decided to fan the flames a bit by informing the world that his days in Houston were over -- via his Twitter page, naturally.
HOUSTON -- Trevor Ariza officially signed with the Houston Rockets on Wednesday, but not before the Cleveland Cavaliers made a last-ditch effort trying to convince him to break the verbal commitment he made last week.
The Houston Rockets were supposed to provide answers during the official introduction of the newly signed free-agent forward Trevor Ariza on Wednesday.
There is a reason nothing stays the same in the NBA. It's never good enough -- even at the top.
The Boston Celtics aligned their three stars and rode them all the way to a NBA championship in 2008.
One of the biggest moves of this free agent season went down on Thursday, when it was learned that Ron Artest will be heading to the Lakers. Matt Moore and I break down what is effectively going to be L.A. trading Trevor Ariza for Artest, as it was also announced that Ariza agreed to a deal with the Rockets. 
As we all attempt to grok Ron Artest: Los Angeles Laker, much will (rightfully) be made of the strange relationship Kobe Bryant and our antihero Artest enjoy. Off the court, the stars claim to be best friends. On the floor, there has been some serious (and recent!) bad blood.
If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. That's the mindset that Ron Artest has apparently taken following today's news that he's agreed to join Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles. Artest was instrumental in helping the Rockets take the eventual champion Lakers to seven games during the Western Conference semifinals. Instead of serving as Kobe's antagonist, he'll become Kobe's sidekick. 
Ron Artest caused a bit of a flurry Wednesday night when he went on his Twitter account and announced he was signing a new deal. Of course it was all a joke/publicity stunt. However, the activity on his twitter account -- particularly the farewell to Houston tweet -- made Artest's agent David Bauman come out and claim that the Twitter account is a fake. 
As if Cleveland wasn't already a focal point of the NBA universe, it may be reaching a whole new level of crazy. A brand of crazy NBA fans only know as ... Ron Artest. 
