Traveling Violation: The Implications of a Darwinian NBA

Back in 2008, I had the amazing opportunity to make the trip to the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts and watch the Celtics and Lakers renew their rivalry (then for the first time in decades) on the grand stage of the NBA Finals. I have a lot of memories from that day that I’m sure I’ll never forget:

1. Having a legitimate conversation with Magic Johnson and lying by saying I played high school ball because I sincerely doubted he’d care to hear about the fact that I chose musical theatre instead and my reasons for doing so.

2. Sitting behind Trevor Ariza on the team bus and wanting nothing more than to say I wish
he was still a Knick. Present company made that statement a little inappropriate.

3. DJ Mbenga… Enough said.

4. Donovan McNabb’s atrocious-looking red sweater vest.

5. The awesome Laker-Celtic highlight reel accompanied by Phil Collins’ “In The Air Tonight.”

And plenty of other little moments that would be worth an article in itself and, of course, the actual game.

Something else occurred to me that night and I admit it didn’t feel as profound to me back then as it does now, but as Paul Pierce and Kobe Bryant acknowledged each other at center court it dawned on me that both Paul Pierce and Kobe Bryant had been on the Celtics and Lakers,
respectively, for their entire careers and, incidentally, my whole life.

Despite the similarity of playing their entire careers for one team, Paul Pierce and Kobe Bryant’s individual back stories heading into that series could not be more different. Kobe’s character
was often questioned in the sense that he was, at times, viewed as a self-centered hot dog, whose ability to emotionally and mentally lead a team and raise others to his level of, let's face it, greatness was in doubt. Kobe was a proven winner who, while yet to win a title without Shaq, never had his heart, guts, and individual abilities questioned.

Paul Pierce had very good years with the Celtics and had nice run of playoff pushes with Antoine Walker throughout the early 2000s. The Celtics never quite got over the hump and as the once proud Boston franchise tried and failed to rebuild around him, the team’s winning percentage suffered and Pierce bore the brunt of that burden as some of the Celtic faithful unfairly doubted his heart and desire to win and, in some cases, called for his release via trade or head via guillotine.

However, in the summer of 2008, none of that seemed to matter. For both men that season was a journey towards vindication as each player picked up some All-Star (Pau; Allen, KG) help and were rewriting their legacies as I sat there counting the banners in rafters; nearly all of them from the old Boston Garden.

Such a revelation was worth note back then and in my mind its significance has only been magnified since. As I look at the league today, I see Darwin’s “Survival of the Fittest” theory come to the wide world of sports. With the advent of these new Super Teams in Miami and New York, it seems to be the new fad amongst the NBA's elite to unite in your favorite metropolitan area and gang up on everybody else. Now, this really is not the end of the world. I wrote an article last year about how the small market “little engine that could” teams will always find ways to be relevant and a thorn in the side in these luxury tax welcoming Goliaths and I definitely stick by that statement, but a couple of things have changed since I wrote that article that may change the game forever.

While I’m not 100 percent sure, I feel pretty confident in saying that no longer are current teams with free agents able to offer their current players more money than their other suitors. That is to say that (hypothetically) no longer can the Mavs offer Caron Butler more than any other team in the league. The cap on what amount suitors can offer Caron no longer exists. Therefore it’s a free-for-all as to who can offer Caron the best deal and from Caron’s perspective there is no longer a monetary incentive for Caron to sign an extension, mid-season or otherwise, so it’s in his best interest as a professional and businessman to wait until his contract expires to hear multiple offers from whatever teams are interested in him.

Now, Dallas is arguably a championship contender, so maybe Caron is inclined to stay there anyway and he may not be the best example. But apply that same situation to Brandon Jennings and Kevin Martin and you can see why and how many players would wind up changing their scenery and joining and/or forming and makeshift All-Star team and instant title contender.

League owners are wise to this and don’t want to end up hanging in the breeze waiting for their particular superstar to decide to stick with, or ditch them. Owners are now being proactive and seeking to eliminate the possibility of winding up with nothing by trading these stars to other teams to ensure at least some sort of return on their investment, even if it’s not the All-Star himself. Hence, all this madness (compelling, but madness) regarding the future homes for 2012 free agents Dwight Howard and Chris Paul. Even if a player is leaning towards staying with one franchise, there’s a chance that the team’s owner ship won’t take the risk and ship him out, just to be safe. These factors are creating a future NBA with players more mobile than at any other point in league history.

Simply put, get used to the Super Team trend and be careful whose jersey you buy as a result. The league is evolving and while I’m not ruling quality basketball coming from small market teams, franchise players may indeed be even more of an endangered species than they were before. Players will graze where grass is greener and so as not to be left with no lawn at all, NBA owners will help them slide under the fence.

With all that said, I’m sure there will be exceptions to this rule throughout history and already I find it hard to believe that Dwayne Wade or Dirk Nowitzki will ever leave Dallas and Miami,
but nonetheless the game is changing and both the mindsets of the players and owners are adjusting, potentially at the expense of career franchise players.

In hindsight, Bryant and Pierce’s nod at center court ran deeper than Paul acknowledging Kobe and vice versa. These future Hall of Famers seemed to be paying an homage not only to each other, but to their franchises they represented which after 19 long years had finally come
full circle to revitalize something that albeit unspoken, was perennial in the first place. In that moment Paul and Kobe embodied the NBA’s fabled past not only through the jersey’s they wore that night, but the route which they took to get to get there. It was "The Truth" versus "The Show". The same as it ever was. The same as it always will be.

The CBA makes me wonder if such a moment will ever happen again.

I'm So Happy, I'm Gonna Join The Band

My use of Led Zeppelin quotes to title these pieces will not be deterred by the sudden prevalence of optimism in the NBA world. That's right, ladies and gents, the season is officially back on and barring some unforeseen catastrophe, will begin on Christmas Day and drastically outshine anything I find under the Christmas tree. (Seriously, it's usually just socks and various holiday themed retail gift cards.) Here are a few things to note now that the lockout is behind us.

1. I had a feeling a deal was coming, honestly. I know that would be something any young, arguably quite good-looking, reporter would say to make them sound smarter and borderline clairvoyant, but at the risk of over-quoting in this article, I'd like to pull a line from 'The Dark Knight' and say "the night is darkest just before the dawn." The desertification of the NBA Players union essentially showed the owners the players' metaphorical hand regarding labor negotiations. With talks not to resume and lawsuits taken to court, there would be no other moves for the players to make. Essentially, in my non-expert opinion, following the desertification we were either on the verge of talks resuming or the fabled "nuclear winter" eluded to by Commissioner Stern. When faced with that kind of ultimatum of extremes, I guess you're forced to either be an optimist or pessimist as a fan, and once Billy Hunter said talks would resume, I had a feeling the sun was finally rising.

2. Keep your criticism of David Stern in perspective. I can't say that I've always been an advocate for him throughout this situation, but the man fought for the owners and then the players to improve the league and keep it intact. This lockout, while maybe uglier (I'm a little young to compare the two, but I know the 1998 NBAPA never disbanded.) was resolved quicker than the lockout of 1998. Like I said, I can't say I've been this supportive all along, but the man got the job done, and albeit cliche, all's well that ends well.

3. For a while, much like Adam Morrison, these games are only going to look good on paper. Temper your expectations for a stretch this season. We won't be sure who'll be coming back in shape and who won't. The increased limelight given to overseas play likely motivated many players to maintain game legs, but that won't apply to all players, and no matter how in shape an athlete is, playing three games in three nights to make up for lost time is going to hinder their performance. It won't be pretty for a while, but it's still NBA ball, and by the the post-season it should be running smoothly.

4. Absolute only upside of the lockout is Dirk and the Mavs getting their rings on opening night while LeBron, Wade, and Bosh have to watch from courtside. Merry Christmas, indeed. I'm hoping Cuban will spring for some coal for the Heat, so they don't feel left out of the holiday spirit of giving. Though, I would mind their chestnuts roasting on an open fire.

5. My analysis of team previews won't mean much until the closing of the free agency period. For that reason, I'm going to abandon my cumulative season previews. Expect an article on a few sleeper teams next week as I continue to provide filler until Christmas tip-off.

Be well, my friends.

Twitter: @Poliwastaken

What Is And What Should Never Be

Confession #1- I had a wide variety of Led Zeppelin songs to choose from regarding this title.

Confession #2- I’m a little embarrassed to be scribing these bad boys at this point with the league in such disrepair. It feels a little bit like reporting on professional wrestling in the sense that I’m micro-analyzing something that isn’t real in the first place. Bear with me and with the power of positive thinking and an inkling of denial, these statements may have relevance in the near future.

With that said, let’s get down to business and preview the coming season for the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference.

Boston Celtics (56-26, 3 seed, lost in Eastern Conference semis)- As much as these cats are old dogs at this point, it’s hard to over look the core of Pierce, Allen, and Garnett in the context of a shortened season. However, it’s equally hard to ignore the complete and utter flop that was the Kristic/Green trade last season. The squad looked out of sync on offense and seemed to lose at least a good bit of their collective backbone on the defensive end without the ever-scowling Perkins holding the physical bigs of the league in check. It’s not hard to imagine an adapted Celtic offense that can utilize the perimeter game of Kristic and the mid-range skills set of Green, who may well replace Pierce in the starting lineup sooner than we think. With the still maturing
Rondo who’s already capable of breaking down most any opponent and/or finding his teammates, the sky is still the limit for that offense, barring an injury. But that Celtic team has built this era of their championship mentality on suffocating defense that with the absence of Perkins has involuntarily disappeared entirely. Garnett is still there and no one I’d like to tango with on the blocks (lest I take a shot to my basketballs) but he’s more bark than bite at this point anyway. A shortened seasoned favors this merry band of savvy vets, but I think they may well have lost too much too late to be a title threat barring the acquisition of a true back up point guard or a true emergence of Green or the injury riddled Daniels.

New York Knicks (42-40, 6 seed, lost in First Round)- Yes, my friends and those wary of me calling them that without meeting them first, the Knicks are indeed relevant. I’m writing this article from Long Island, so don’t for a second believe that I’m not just as excited as you are, but let’s temper our zeal, shall we? The Knicks are improved, but are a squad more built on market-value than potential production. Amare’s knees are time bombs which depreciate in value with every stroke of this keyboard. Chauncey Billups is arguably Springfield bound, but Mr. Big Shot looked far from healthy towards the close of the season and will likely end his career in the Empire State without much fanfare. The Knicks are not a very deep team that traded two of their best defenders in Gallo and Ill Will last season only to look rather impish against the already less-than-imposing Celtic team. If someone were to make the argument that Douglas in the point of the future, I’d certainly hear them out. It’s not too absurd of a feeling, but as relevant as the Knicks suddenly are, they’re that far away from contention. Let’s not forget whom the Knicks
acquired last season. If there’s one x-factor that can cause me to put my size 12 Nike in my mouth, it’s Carmelo Anthony. The Knicks will certainly be fun to watch (except when Jeffries touches the ball) and I look forward to getting the chance to tune in.

Philadelphia Sixers (41-41, 7 seed, lost in First Round) Just so you understand that I’m not
a total pessimist, I want to say that the stock of Sixers, in my opinion, has never been higher. Running into a Heat team that simply had them outmatched on every level was the only reason that the tremendous job done by Doug Collins was overlooked on a national scale. Collins made Iggy realize that his superstar potential rested in becoming a playmaker and not a scorer. That alone is worth a Nobel Peace Prize as far as I’m concerned. The growth of this team is worthy of a separate article that I’ll likely resort to writing before the year is out, but for the sake of summarization this team is young, has Elton Brand to anchor that offense, and has everyone on that squad knowing their role and filling it well. Young players are growing and eager to learn. I know that analysis is painfully brief, but like I said, if I got started, I’d type your eyes off. (The print journalism equivalent of “talk your ear off”… I’m not sure if that worked.)

New Jersey Nets (Not Good)- How is it possible that a team can have Deron Williams and Brook Lopez and still be the least interesting team to watch? I want to believe in this squad. I was a big supporter of Outlaw in his Portland days and Kris Humphries is one of the most gifted rebounders in the game today. Williams is a great player, to be sure, but I think we’re kind of seeing the magic of Jerry Sloan’s Utah system as he looks much more human than he has in recent years. Let’s not forget, however, Williams’ lack of weapons to give the ball to. Lopez
has flashes of true brilliance, but is still far too easily bossed around on the blocks given his size and his apathy or inability to rebound is puzzling to say the least. Be they in Brooklyn, East Rutherford, or my backyard, this team is regrettably nothing to get excited about.

Toronto Raptors (Even Worse)- Who? I’m sorry, I know that’s insensitive, but other than
Bargniani and Amir Johnson not being awful and DeRozan being guaranteed a slot on Sportscenter once a week, there’s nothing here to muse about. Even their draft picks will be marinating overseas for some time before the Maple Leaf nation sees a return on their investment. No offense intended, but hopefully next year there will be something more to write about. (Note that the squad has a new coach in Dwayne Casey. See my previous article for further, albeit brief, thoughts on that.)

Wanted: Leader of the Pack

At last, the NBA team that has drafted point guards more often than Eddy Curry has attempted to diet in recent years may have given the Twin Cities reason to view their metaphorical glass as half full. While the job done by projected reserve Luke Ridinour of filling in for the fumbling and injury-riddled Johnny Flynn this past season is one of the more underrated bright spots of yet another disappointing season in Minnesota, the Timberwolves are finally due to see a return on a 2005 investment. Armed with awe-inspiring court-vision, a very amenable Spanish accent, and quite masculine eyeliner (draft night reference), Ricky Rubio prepares to burst onto the NBA basketball scene, and hopefully usher in a whole new era of Wolves basketball. But he won't do it alone.

The Wolves have a variety of weapons, at least on the offensive side of the court. Kevin Love is almost unarguably the most gifted rebounder in the league. Which is saying something, given the stagnation of the franchise since he began his pro-career out of UCLA. Love boasts a gifted passing game for any position, no less for his size, and can score from nearly anywhere on the court, even stretching his perimeter game beyond the three point line this past season. The fact that he performed so consistently exceptionally on such a less than exceptional team speaks volumes about his character as a player. Pardon the pun, but what's not to love?

His supporting cast is nothing to scoff at either. Michael Beasley is coming of a smoking season... wait, let me rephrase...a piping hot season...darn, nevermind, I'll just be blunt... *sigh* He had a great season and was an offensive explosion and after struggling in the shadow of Dwayne Wade in Miami, it seems he may well have bloomed enveloped in the winter winds of Middle America. Shooting guard in training, Wes Johnson, has acclimated to the game faster than I would have expected and can be a gunner for the squad going forward. Arizona's Williams is a proven two with an NBA body who should be able to contribute to the cause sooner rather than later. Martel Webster, whom I've always been partial to, should have a healthy season and may be one of the NBA's sleepers should the rate of play increase at the Target Center. Which brings me to my next point.

The makeshift triangle offense of the Kurt Rambis-era is officially extinct. This coaching vacancy has to be a welcome sight to fans. Rambis wanted his team to play a very paced and structured game and essential placed chains on his point guard, confining him to a half-court game. I would go so far as to say Rambis is in large part to blame for Flynn's slow start in the league. Also, let's not forget the huge issue he had with Big Al Jefferson and Kevin Love being on the floor at the same time; something I never understood, especially in the triangle. I feel like it's sometimes a scapegoat for analysts to say a team should run more as a panacea to their team's woes, but this team is certainly a bit more built to run, or at least be a bit more versatile than they have been in the past. With Rubio making the jump overseas, the timing could be just right.

Speculation has it that the Wolves are eying Adleman, a pick I adore. Here's a man who arguably did just as good of a job containing Ron Artest as Phil Jackson. A man who pushed the title bound Lakers to 7 games with Aaron Brooks, Scola, and a Yao and T-Mac-less Rocket squad; a man who at the peak of the one-on-one era, stared into the abyss and developed a team in Sacramento built around ball movement; a man who is a maestro of getting the most out of his talent who always been just barely overshadowed by men like Jackson and Popovich.

The bottom line is this: The Wolves have too much talent at this point be the bottom feeders of the league. While not always the case, in this instance, a coaching change may be just what's needed to give the Wolves and their fans something to howl about.

Frank-ly Speaking: New Coaches In The East

Lawrence Frank: It was clear that Mo-town needed a new direction. Not even a season into his head coaching gig in Detroit, John Kuester, had lost all connections with the Piston players and fan-base. An erratic Rip Hamilton was relegated to the bench and the rest of the team played like they might as well have joined him. Other than former-Zag Austin Daye and Jonas Jerebko taking some real steps forward, the roster was rounded out by underwhelming performances from old dogs, Ben Wallace and Chris Wilcox, banged up seasons from CV, Prince, Rodney Stuckey, and Ben Gordon, and finally, youngsters Will Bynum and Jason Maxiell all but regressing before our very eyes. With all that said, even when the team was relatively healthy, they really never looked like they wanted to play anyway. A once proud franchise that all too eerily resembles the state of the city it calls home, is in need of a pick-me-up. Enter Lawrence Frank.

In my short-time as a student of the NBA game, I've never witnessed a coach take a team's mentality from worst to first so quickly. When he received his first coaching gig in New Jersey in 2004, he took a downtrodden Nets team on winning streak of 13 games, right out of the gate. The only thing I recall changing in the Net style of play was that Vince Carter became more of a basketball player than a one-dimensional highlight reel. VC has since gone to the opposite extreme and become just an absolute bomber of ill-advised shots. (There's got to be a better way to phrase that, but the mention of Vince Carter's game causes me to lose control of the use of my linguistics.) Anyway, that's neither here nor there.

It should be noted that five years later, Frank was issued walking papers after his Nets squad started out the season inauspiciously with an 0 and 16 record that stretched beyond his tenure (go Sixers), so to an extent you're only as good as the players around you.

But that's just it, nobody knows how good the players around him are. I mean, I'm not advocating for this too hard, the glass of the Detroit Pistons is most certainly half empty, but with a team about as motivated to win as a shark is to eat celery, and dysfunctional enough to abandon professionalism entirely and not show up for practice as some sort of silent, yet all too public, form of protest, I'm surprised the glass has any liquid in it at all. Ridiculous.

Time will tell if Charlie and Ben were worth their price tags, T-Mac worth the injury risk, Teyshaun will ever be back, Rip will ever play again, and Joe Dumars will have a job at all under these new owners, but Lawrence Frank may well be the guy in the short-term to get this team back on the assembly line. (Reaching for a car reference.)

Detroit needs a true point guard. Not a star, per se, but anyone who can share the ball half as well as Chauncey did. At this point, it's clear it's not Stuckey. Maybe shopping some of those 2s is on the horizon. Frank won't lead them into the future, but he could be the perfect guy to get the attitude of winning and respect back in Detroit. Frank's a buffer coach, but likely the mechanic the Pistons need to get their motor running again. (Okay, that was the last one, I promise.)

Dwayne Casey- Much like the aforementioned Kevin McHale, Casey looks to rebound from an '05 coaching stint in Minnesota that didn't go too well. Since that time Casey has picked up some jewelry, as he was an assistant coach for last year's champs, the Mavs. Any championship experience helps, but the likelihood of the Raptors being successful is slim. You'll forgive my lack of knowledge on the subject, but I'm not even really sure how Casey would run the team, and the pieces there seem limited. DeRozan is someone worth building around to an extent, and Bargnani has a nice little game, but overall I see more of the same in Toronto and I have little doubt that they will spend at least one more season as "Chris Bosh's former team". The Raptors have some picks from overseas that they hope will eventually turn things around, but honestly, your guess is as good as mine. I'll see the results when you do and as a biased Mavs fan, I sure do wish him the best.

Booth To The Huddle: Manifest Destiny in the West

The following is my analysis of new coaches in the Western Conference.

Mike Brown (L.A. Lakers): Let's get it out of the way. It is a near impossible feat to step into the great Phil Jackson's shoes and fill them overnight. Phil leaving was his choice, not the organization's. Too much criticism for the Brown hiring is unwarranted. I don't think there was any hiring to be made that wouldn't be met with similar skepticism. Adleman and Larry Brown come to mind as possibilities, but even then, none of those coaches have the zen of ten to prove worthy of tenure.

Think about what Mike Brown walks into. He sets up shop in one of the biggest cities in America surrounded by glitz, glamour, smog, and people who expect as much perfection on the basketball court as they do from their hairstylist. Surely I'm generalizing, but the prevailing attitude is relevant. Brown is inheriting a championship worthy team filled with players who, while not in the twilight of their careers, are certainly not as young as they used to be. This is also a squad that in spite of a semi-ironic name change clearly has its issues off the court regarding chemistry and Lord knows what else. Not being caught up on gossip rags and reality television, I'm not the guy to tell you that aspect of the game. Brown certainly does have his hands full. With that said, he's also walking into a place where Kobe Bryant is your starting 2 guard, Andrew Bynum and Matt Barnes fix to be healthy, Mr. Peace steps out of the beguiling triangle, Shannon Brown improves every year, and two of the most versatile bigs in the league, Gasol and Odom, are still in the tail ends of their respective primes. I feel pretty safe saying Brown's glass is half full.

Regarding this team's window closing, I personally don't get the debate. Kobe is noticeably showing the effects of his years on the grind for the first time I can remember, but he's still Kobe, and I challenge you to drop him out of the ten best players in the league this season (15, maybe). D. Fish may well be over the hill, but Steve Blake is backing him up. Everyone else of championship importance, excluding Bynum, may not be a spring chicken, but if the Spurs can keep in going for as long as they have, and the Celtics can be favored in the East before that regrettable trade, I think we're at least two seasons away from this being a true discussion.

Regarding Brown as a coach, I think this past year's playoff run by the Heat shows us that the success of the Cavs had a little more to do with Mike Brown than one might have initially thought. LeBron certainly makes all the difference, but to have the best record in the East two years in a row and a Finals visit with LeBron and relative nobodies as of now trumps a star-studded Heat team coming off a Finals loss that in hindsight wasn't as close as it felt in the moment.

Brown's teams always hung their hat on defense and rebounding hard. Of course, a lot of that had to do with LeBron having next to no jumper early in his career, but nonetheless, Brown loves the little things, and after being destroyed almost single handedly by JJ Barea this past May, perhaps a dose of the little things is just what Dr. Buss ordered. I am curious to see what happens on offense. So much of what happened in Cleveland was LeBron dominating the ball, driving and dishing to West, Gibson, and the great Donyell Marshall. The Lakers will need more formal sets and ball movement to properly utilize their wealth of talent.

Mike Brown is not Phil Jackson, but he is Mike Brown, and Phil Jackson did just get dismantled by the title-bound Mavs. Until proven otherwise, Brown may have the tools to hold a metaphorical mirror up to this Lakers squad and get the Lake-show back on track before the title window closes for the foreseeable future.

Mark Jackson (Golden State): Let's be honest, when it comes to catchy mantras, Mark Jackson is second to none. However, I question how the 2-3 zone known as "hand down, man down" will translate to the sidelines. Now, I tend to think that anything that steps away permanently from Nellie-ball is a step in the right direction, but here is a man with absolutely no coaching experience to his name. Definitely a risky pick for the Bay Area. With that said, you don't get to be third all-time in assists without knowing a bit more than catchphrases.

The point guard truly runs the team and is, in a sense, responsible for knowing everyone else's role as a position and individual so that you can get your teammates the ball where they and the consequent team can be successful. As fun and admittedly easy it can be to make fun of Mark Jackson, the St. John's alum is no dummy. With a re energized Monta Ellis, a presumably healthy Steph Curry, Dorrel Wright's breakout season, and a ton of youth around him, perhaps Jackson can grow into coaching as his squad grows into playing. If he can get David Lee to be the 20-15)player he's capable of being, the Warriors may well have picked up the steal of the coaching market. Mama, there goes that coach.

Kevin McHale (Houston): A solemn moment of silence for McHale's announcing career. There are a couple commentators a really enjoy, but his honesty, analysis, and levity in his work made him by far my favorite analyst. It was great to have a guy who knew at heart that it was just a game and still managed to be insightful and intelligent. I'll miss him this season, assuming we play it. Houston is not an easy place to roll into as they come off a fire sale of most anyone of value this past year and Yao calls it quits. Former Suns backup, Dragic, has some promise, and they still have the human army knife, Luis Scola and the hardest working man in high-tops, Chuck Hayes. Lowry and Martin appear to be flourishing and Patterson appears to be on the verge of blossoming. With that said, Rick Adleman was always great at making the most out of what he had. McHale's gig is definitely a rebuilding one, but he's got some blue collar guys that can help his cause in the long run. Coming off a brief coaching stint in Minnesota, clearly rebuilding is something McHale is comfortable with attempting.

Give Peace A Chance

Check out my other miscellanious blog for my thoughts on Ron Artests name change and some very minor Laker notes centered around Mike Brown.

Check back in later this week for fresh material regarding new coaches for a season I hope will still take place.

In the mean time: http://polidmb.blogspot.com/2011/06/give-peace-chance.html Ron Artest keeps the peace.